WALES

Tourism

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the tourist industry in Wales on promotion abroad of tourism in Wales.

Don Touhig: My right hon. Friend and I work very closely with the First Minister of the Welsh Assembly Government. Tourism is a major focus of our discussions. The tourist industry contributes more than £2.5 billion a year to the Welsh economy and provides employment for around 100,000 people.

Coal Industry (Compensation Schemes)

Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent information the Welsh subgroup of the coal health claims monitoring group has received on payments made to retired miners or their families under the respiratory disease and vibration white finger compensation schemes.

Don Touhig: The latest available figures for Wales indicate that at the end of August under the respiratory disease scheme we had settled over 21,000 claims and paid £258.5 million and under the VWF scheme we had settled nearly 10,500 claims and paid £96.4 million.

Affordable Housing

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) National Assembly for Wales Secretaries about the provision of affordable housing in Wales.

Peter Hain: This year, Welsh Assembly Government is making available £56.4 million in Social Housing Grant to assist the provision of affordable housing. Together with private funding this will generate investment of over £90 million and provide around 1,000 additional homes for rent and low cost ownership.

Economic Growth

John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the prospects for economic growth in Wales in the next 12 months.

Peter Hain: Most recent economic indicators show that the Welsh economy is performing more strongly now than for a generation, with unemployment continuing to fall, and employment and economic activity rising.

Friction Dynamex Ltd.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the Department of Trade and Industry and the Welsh Assembly Government regarding the closure of Friction Dynamex Ltd.

Don Touhig: My right hon. Friend has discussed this issue with colleagues at the Department of Trade and Industry and the National Assembly for Wales. We are all anxious that those workers treated so badly receive their due.

Community Support Officers

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Home Office on community support officers in Wales.

Don Touhig: My hon. Friend and I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues about matters affecting Wales.
	All four Welsh police forces now have funding for Community Support Officers. In July I met a group of CSOs based in my own constituency who are already coming to be recognised as a valuable part of the local policing team.

Departmental Food Expenditure

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was spent on food by his Department in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03; what proportion of that food by value was produced in the United Kingdom; what guidance he has issued to encourage the procurement of home-grown food; and if he will make a statement.

Don Touhig: The Wales Office has a complement of 55 and does not provide a catering service for staff.
	It is not possible to determine how much of the hospitality budget was spent on food; we always ask catering companies to use Welsh produce where possible.

Health and Social Care

Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales which of the four options to reduce bed blocking outlined in the Review of Health and Social Care in Wales advised by Derek Wanless would require primary legislation to implement.

Don Touhig: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 17 July 2003, Official Report, column 447W.
	The Assembly are currently considering all the options outlined in the Review of Health and Social Care in Wales as part of their detailed report and action plan, which is now due for publication in November. It would therefore be inappropriate to comment on the likely need for legislation that may be identified by the Assembly in order to support any proposals detailed in their implementation plan.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Deprivation

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his policy is to assist areas with (a) low average wages, (b) low average incomes and (c) both low average wages and low average incomes.

Yvette Cooper: The National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal is designed to narrow the gap between the most deprived neighbourhoods and the rest of the country. Low income is a key indicator in the Indices of Multiple Deprivation 2000 used to target resources and focus activity on those areas in greatest need. Policies for neighbourhood renewal include the New Deal for Communities partnerships, the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, Floor targets and the development of local partnerships and community networks.

Government Funding (North-west)

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the Government Office for the North West financial programmes for (a) UK Online, (b) small retailers in deprived areas and (c) CCTV.

Yvette Cooper: These programmes received the following funding allocations:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			  
			  
			 (a) 2000–03 25 
			 (b) 2001–04 2.8 
			 (c) 2001–04 14.4

Government Funding (North-west)

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which wards and programmes within Sefton have benefited from the Government Office for the North West funding programmes for (a) capital investment in housing, (b) major repairs allowance, (c) disabled facilities grants, (d) Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, (e) Community Empowerment Fund, (f) Community Chest and Community Learning Chests, (g) the Objective 1 Programme, (h) the Objective 2 Programme, (i) the Objective 3 Programme, (j) the Community Champions Fund, (k) Pathfinder Young Community Champions Fund, (l) UK Online, (m) Connexions, (n) Connexions Summer Plus, (o) Transforming Youth Work Development Fund, (p) drug and alcohol training, (q) Lifelong Learning Partnerships, (r) Sustainable Development Regional Promotional Budget, (s) renewable energy, (t) Mersey Basin Campaign, (u) building safer communities, (v) Wardens Scheme, (w) small retailer in deprived areas, (x) partnership development, (y) Partnership Support Programme, (z) CCTV, (aa) Target Policing Initiative, (bb) prostitution and (cc) violence against women.

Yvette Cooper: Due to the nature of the grants it is not possible to provide specific details of allocated funds at ward level. The following are programmes that have received funding in Sefton:
	(a) £4.852 million (2003–04)—Capital Investment in Housing.
	(b) £7.37 million (2002–03) £7.191 million (2003–04)—Major Repairs Allowance.
	(c) £713,000 (2002–03) £720,000 (2003–04)—Disabled Facilities Grants.
	All the above can be borough wide. Major repairs allowance is only for use on local authority stock.
	(d) £12.671 million (2001–04) £16,893 million (2004–06)—Neighbourhood Renewal Fund is not prescribed but intended for spend in the most deprived wards.
	(e) £435,423 (2001–04) £290,282 (2004–06)—Community Empowerment Fund for use to set up a borough wide community network.
	(f) £651,015 (2001–04) £657,050 (2004–06)—Community Chest.
	£128,996 (2001–04) £154,796 (2004–06)—Community Learning Chests.
	(g) The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not hold information on levels of European funding at ward level. Also as the Objective One programme is Merseyside-wide in scope, a substantial amount of programme-funded activity will be delivered by organisations that have a pan-Merseyside remit. A project based in one particular area (often at the organisations head office) will therefore draw beneficiaries, or have benefits, and spend money outside its immediate locality. However, Sefton will benefit from the £160 million invested through Objective One in Merseyside in 2002.
	(h) Areas that receive Objective 1 monies are not eligible for either Objective Two or Objective Three funding.
	(i) Objective 3—see h.
	(j) There are seven Community Champions receiving a total of £7,257.
	Current Community Champions include:
	Colette Sheerin Oscroft, No. 35—£416; Tony Roberts, No. 63—£1000; lan Mackinson, No. 65—£180 Margi Robinson, No. 73—£1,209; Mary French, No. 74—£457; John Cunningham, No. 76—£2,000; Eileen Green, No. 100—£1,993.77.
	(k) Sefton does not receive Pathfinder Young Community Champions Fund as Sefton is not an eligible area. DfES ran a national competitive bidding process which Sefton did not enter.
	(l) £261,813 for three UK Online Centres.
	(m) £17.4 million (2003–04) for Greater Merseyside Connexions Partnership. It is not possible to provide specific figures for Sefton as the Merseyside Connexions is Merseyside-wide in scope.
	(n) £333,000 (2003–04)—Positive Activities for Young People (formally Connexions Summer Plus).
	(o) £49,000 (2003–04)—Transforming Youth Work Development Fund.
	(p) £22,000 (2003–04) allocation for Greater Merseyside Connexions Partnership-drug and alcohol training.
	(q) £75,000 (2003–04) for Lifelong Learning Partnerships.
	(r) £500 in 2000 to help the local authority with Local Agenda 21 issues.
	(s) Between 1998–2002 Government Office for the North West employed an energy and environmental adviser who visited 87 businesses in the Sefton area promoting environmental management and resource efficiency. This cost GONW approx £9,000.
	(t) Details on funding for Sefton are not held by the Mersey Basin Campaign.
	(u) Sefton has been awarded £298.5k (2003–04). The initiatives under the Building Safer Communities programme are also being funded in conjunction with £196,745 allocated to Sefton Division under the Basic Command Unit Fund.
	(v) There are no Wardens Schemes being managed by GONW in Sefton at present.
	(w) £21,000 (2001–02), £29,000 2002–03, £29,000 2003–04 Small Retailers in Deprived Areas. Match funding has also been obtained for all three years from the South Sefton Partnership and all South Sefton wards have benefited.
	(x) £50,000 awarded between 2001–03—Partnership Development.
	(y) Allocated on a regional level for 2002–03—Partnership Support Programme awarded six days consultancy to Sefton CDRP to develop a partnership—Training Needs.
	(z) £636,000 has been awarded between 2001–03 for CCTV schemes in Crosby Town Centre, Bootle Town Centre, Southport Town Centre and South Road, Waterloo.
	(aa) No projects were directly supported in the Sefton area from the Targeting Police Initiative.
	(bb) No projects were directly supported in the Sefton area from the prostitution initiative.
	(cc) No projects were directly supported in the Sefton area from the Violence against women initiative.

Local Government Finance

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which census figures will be used for the 2004–05 formula funding share.

Nick Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister intends to use mid-2002 population estimates for the 2004–05 Local Government Settlement.
	The formulae used to distribute grant to local authorities in England make use of various sets of data from the Census, apart from the population estimates that are updated each year. Officials of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister have been discussing with local authority representatives the use of 2001 Census data other than population in the 2004–05 Settlement. Unfortunately, the late availability of some of the 2001 Census data has limited the options for using it in this years settlement. Therefore the 1991 Census data will be used for the 2004–05 Settlement.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is announcing this now in order to remove any uncertainty felt by local authorities regarding the data that will be used for the settlement.
	Officials of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will continue to discuss with local authority representatives the use of the 2001 Census data in future Local Government Finance settlements.

Local Government Finance

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the budgetary impact on social services in the London boroughs named in the Laming Inquiry if the 1991 census figures are used to calculate the 2004–05 formula funding share.

Nick Raynsford: None. The 1991 census data were used to calculate the 2003–04 formula spending shares. Continuing to use these to calculate the 2004–05 formula spending shares should therefore have little impact on any authority's grant allocation relative to 2003–04. The level at which a local authority sets its budget is a matter for that authority, depending on its local priorities.

Homeless People

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much has been spent on providing temporary accommodation for families claiming to be homeless in (a) the Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the north east and (d) England, in each year since 1997.

Yvette Cooper: Information annually reported to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by local authorities identifies expenditure incurred in respect of bed and breakfast, private sector leasing and all other forms of temporary accommodation used by homeless households. This includes associated costs, such as the provision of furniture, property maintenance/refurbishment, rent guarantees, nomination fees and administrative costs, chargeable to the General Fund Services Revenue Account, along with any specific capital charges. Information is not available below local authority level, and that reported by South Tyneside MBC, and all councils comprising the north east region and nationally is shown in the following table.
	
		Local authority revenue expenditure on homelessness -- £000
		
			  Total Net Capital charges 
		
		
			 South Tyneside 
			 1997–98 33 33 n/a 
			 1998–99 35 35 n/a 
			 1999–2000 25 25 n/a 
			 2000–01 29 29 0 
			 2001–02 39 39 0 
			 
			 GONE
			 1997–98 2,235 1,497 n/a 
			 1998–99 2,577 1,631 n/a 
			 1999–2000 2,737 1,768 n/a 
			 2000–01 2,645 1,885 39 
			 2001–02 4,277 3,634 1,100 
			 
			 England 
			 1997–98 214,802 122,669 n/a 
			 1998–99 278,474 150,299 n/a 
			 1999–2000 334,853 171,492 n/a 
			 2000–01 372,424 201,321 2,769 
			 2001–02 429,376 189,426 4,366 
		
	
	Note:
	Data on capital charges were not collected prior to 2000/01
	Source
	ODPM RO6 financial returns

Homeless People

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what measures are in place to help to reduce the number of homeless people;
	(2)  what further support he plans to offer to help the homeless.

Yvette Cooper: The March 2002 report, "More than a roof", set out the Government's approach to tackling and preventing homelessness. Specific measures included investment of £125 million in 2002–03 to support local authorities and the voluntary agencies working with them to support new approaches for tackling and preventing homelessness. The Homelessness Directorate within the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has a revenue budget of £70 million and £23.5 million capital allocation for 2003–04. These resources will help to support the Government's commitment that by March 2004 no homeless family with children should be placed in a bed and breakfast hotel other than in an emergency, and even then for no more than six weeks.
	Funding will also support new approaches that help people tackle the problems that are making and keeping them homeless and help to sustain the Prime Minister's target to reduce rough sleeping by two thirds of 1998 levels. The number of people sleeping rough on any one night in England has reduced from a baseline figure of 1,850 in June 1998 to the lowest recorded level of 504 in June 2003.
	Other measures include:
	the Homelessness Act 2002, which required local authorities to undertake a review of homelessness in their area and put a strategy in place by end of July 2003 to ensure that support and accommodation is available within their districts for homeless people, and those at risk of homelessness;
	a widening of the groups of people with priority need for accommodation under the homelessness legislation, ensuring that more vulnerable people get the help they need;
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has invested £6 million in 2002–03 and are investing £11 million in 2003–04 on a special initiative to make 500 homes available for homeless families with children living in bed and breakfast (B&B) hotels in London;
	new advice to housing authorities on arrangements to ensure that all babies and children placed in temporary accommodation receive their health and developmental tests;
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister launched a three month consultation in May 2003 on legislation and statutory guidance to limit the use of B&B accommodation for families with children, raise standards in all forms of temporary accommodation—particularly B&Bs—and ensure that households in B&B hotels have access to support from health, education and social services. We are currently considering responses to take forward proposals by end of 2003 to help reinforce achievement of B&B target;
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is working to improve access to services and information on services for households in England experiencing domestic violence or the threat of it. The Homelessness Directorate will invest £23 million of capital funding over the next three years to provide additional safe refuge bedspaces for those fleeing violence and their families where this is supported by local authorities as part of their homelessness duties.

Housing

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many of the proposed new dwellings in the Thames Gateway area he estimates will be council houses.

Keith Hill: Provision of affordable housing to meet the needs of Gateway communities and secure sustainable and balanced growth, is an important element of the Gateway strategy. Decisions on central Government funding to support this, which will be allocated through the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme (ADP), will be made by Ministers of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in the light of recommendations from the East of England, London and South-East Regional Housing Boards. ADP funding is not available for local authorities but they can provide housing through their own capital programme where this a priority and represents good value for money.

Housing

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what conclusions have been drawn from the effectiveness of differing schemes to aid key workers onto the housing ladder.

Keith Hill: Around 4,100 key workers have so far been helped under the Starter Home Initiative to buy homes they would otherwise have been unable to afford. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister receives regular monitoring data from the Housing Corporation on activity under the Starter Home Initiative and, in addition, will be commissioning an evaluation of the effectiveness of the programme. This study is expected to start towards the end of the year and will report during 2004.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is currently discussing with key worker sponsor departments how key worker housing assistance can best be targeted in future to meet recruitment and retention needs. These discussions include the type of properties and tenure required and take into account views expressed by employers, key workers and others about the operation of the Starter Home Initiative, and also key worker housing preferences. Regional Housing Boards are also advising on the allocation of funding for key worker schemes in their areas. Bids for key worker housing schemes will be invited in the Autumn.

Housing

David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research his Department has (a) undertaken and (b) sponsored into the effectiveness of those local authorities that have transferred their housing stock through large-scale voluntary transfer.

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has funded two studies which explore issues connected with the local authority role after the stock has transferred. They are (i) "Large Scale Voluntary Transfers: Staff impacts and implications" published in August 2003 which explores the impact of the transfer programme on employees in both the local authority and the registered social landlord sectors and considers the role of staff who remain in the local authority post transfer. (ii) "Housing Functions and stock transfer" will be published in late 2003 which will set out the key issues that housing authorities need to consider when deciding whether to retain or contract out the delivery of their statutory housing functions.
	The Audit Commission Housing Inspectorate is responsible for inspecting and reporting on local authority housing services, including those retained when stock is transferred. The Office contributed to the Audit Commission report "Housing After Transfer—The Local Authority Role" which was published in December 2002 and which drew upon previous housing inspection reports.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he will ensure the arguments for and against a large scale voluntary transfer of council housing are made available to tenants in advance of their ballot;
	(2)  if he will take steps to ensure that councils opting for large-scale voluntary transfers provide equal (a) financial assistance to the parties involved and (b) opportunity for them to distribute campaign material to all tenants.

Keith Hill: The "Delivering Decent Homes Option Appraisal—Guidance for Local Authorities" published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in June this year sets out how tenants should be central to the appraisal of options for delivering decent social housing within their authority. Where the choice emerging from the option appraisal is to pursue housing transfer, we then expect authorities to further explain the transfer proposals to tenants and to provide them with the facts surrounding housing transfer in accordance with the Code of Recommended Practice on Local Authority Publicity. The code allows authorities to refute any misleading arguments put to tenants by those opposed to transfer.
	To enable tenants to make an informed choice the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister expects accurate information on the housing association sector to be provided to them by authorities and Independent Tenants' Advisors. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister would also expect the individual housing associations working with tenants with a view to becoming their new landlord to provide tenants with accurate information on their policies and operations.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will ask the Housing Corporation to report on the performance of housing associations taking over council housing stock in respect of (a) promised improvements, (b) rent and service charge increases, particularly after the five year moratorium and (c) evictions.

Keith Hill: The information is as follows:
	(a) Promised improvements: The National Audit Office (NAO) carried out a study in 2002, "Improving Social Housing Through Transfer". This showed that transfer associations had met their promises to improve houses, or were on schedule to do so. The Housing Corporation has a role in monitoring the performance of all registered associations to ensure that they meet the Government's Decent Homes Standard by 2010.
	(b) Rent and service charge increases: The Housing Corporation collects details of average rents and service charges for all registered social landlords. These are published annually in a sector study. For the last three years for which data are available, the increase for all whole stock transfers are:
	
		
			  Percentage 
		
		
			 2000 4.4 
			 2001 2.9 
			 2002 4.8 
		
	
	It is possible to analyse the increase for each association post transfer guarantees, and I will write with further details to my hon. Friend the Member for Great Grimsby.
	(c) Evictions: The number of evictions for all large scale voluntary transfer landlords recorded by the Corporation's Continuous Recording of Lettings (CORE) survey over the last three years is:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 2000–01 1,640 
			 2001–02 2,095 
			 2002–03 2,664 
		
	
	Unpublished research commissioned by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister shows that evictions as a percentage of stock for all housing associations and local authorities is:
	
		Percentage
		
			  Housing association Local authority 
		
		
			 2001–02 0.63 0.63 
			 2002–03 0.64 0.65 
		
	
	The number of evictions as a percentage of stock transferred is less than half of 1 per cent.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to his answer of 18 June 2003, Official Report, column 341, to the hon. Member for Sheffield, Attercliffe (Mr. Betts), on council housing, what proposals he has to provide adequate funding for those council tenants who wish to stay with local authorities after tenants' ballots on council housing transfers.

Keith Hill: Some local authorities will be able to meet the decent homes target using mainstream housing funds and their own resources, e.g. capital receipts, particularly since mainstream housing funds have been increased since the Government came to Office.
	However, alternative options have been provided. The Sustainable Communities Plan made it clear that local authorities seeking additional investment in their housing stock are able to choose from three options; set up a high performing Arm's Length Housing Management Organisation (ALMO); pursue a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) scheme; and stock transfer. Only stock transfer results in a change of ownership of the stock.
	The Sustainable Communities Plan also made it clear that authorities that do not pursue any of the three alternative options cannot expect increased investment above that provided for in the Housing Investment Programme.
	The option appraisal process is designed to ensure that tenants are at the heart of the decisions about the future management of their homes. This process should make a negative vote on the chosen option less likely. However, in the event of a negative ballot the local authority and the tenants will need to revisit the options that will deliver decent homes by 2010.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister by when local authorities were required to submit their proposals on the future of their council housing stock; and what proposals he has for encouraging early applications.

Keith Hill: As announced in the Sustainable Communities Plan all authorities with housing stock have to produce objective and rigorous option appraisals for Government sign-off by July 2005.
	To ensure that we reach the 2010 target Government Offices for the Regions and the Community Housing Task Force are working with individual local authorities on creating an action plan that will ensure that all local authorities have an option appraisal signed off as soon as possible.
	Local authorities wishing to take advantage of future Arm's Length Housing Management Organisation (ALMO), stock transfer or Private Finance Initiative (PFI) schemes will not be granted a place on a programme unless their option appraisal has been signed off by the relevant Government Office.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many local authorities have submitted proposals on bringing their council housing stock up to the decent homes standard; how many have chosen between the Government's three options of large-scale voluntary transfer, private finance initiative and arms length management organisation; and how many have not yet notified their intentions.

Keith Hill: The Sustainable Communities Plan made it clear that all stock owning local authorities must undertake a formal options appraisal process for Government sign-off by July 2005. Guidance on the process was issued by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in June 2003. No options appraisals have yet been signed off.
	However since April 2001, when there were 246 local authorities that owned housing stock, the following schemes have been put in place:
	22 local authorities have transferred all of their stock to a registered social landlord.
	Seven have undertaken partial transfers,
	18 local authorities are on the 2002 and 2003 programmes for whole stock transfer pending a ballot
	Seven more are proposing partial transfers pending a ballot
	34 local authorities have secured places on the Arm's Length Management Organisation (ALMO) programme, 12 of which have already set up their ALMO and secured additional funding after gaining a 2* or 3* rating from the Housing Inspectorate.
	Nine local authorities have been given permission to let Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts for the management of some of their housing stock. Two of these contracts have now been signed.
	In total 74 local authorities are on programmes which account for the whole of their stock. That leaves 172 local authorities that have yet to formally agree an approach.

Operation Gangmaster

Peter Luff: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what role his Department has played in Operation Gangmaster in relation to (a) planning, (b) housing, (c) housing benefit, (d) council tax benefit and (e) community cohesion responsibilities of local authorities.

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is not one of the Government Departments directly involved in Operation Gangmaster.

South Sefton Partnership

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps the South Sefton Partnership have taken to improve access to (a) job and training opportunities and (b) affordable childcare.

Yvette Cooper: This is one of South Sefton Partnership's four key objectives. The Partnership has recently prepared a small booklet "South Sefton Partnership—The Story So Far" which aims to illustrate steps taken to date on these four key objectives.
	The steps taken in respect of this objective are as follows:
	Establishing an Intermediate Labour Market scheme to act as a 'bridge' back to work for long-term unemployed residents.
	Developing the Sefton@Work project which will help unemployed South Sefton residents gain access to jobs and training through advice, guidance and placement services and encouraging local firms to recruit local people.
	Improving educational opportunities for South Sefton residents through an adult community learning programme in local schools.
	Helping 12 local people to find work as teacher's assistants within South Sefton Education Action Zone schools.
	Supporting the Bootle-based Independence Initiative which helps ex-substance abusers to access training and work.
	Funding the Seaforth Older Children's Service (SOCS) which provides childcare in school holidays allowing local people to retain jobs that might otherwise be at risk.
	Providing laptop computers for looked-after children in the area to help to improve their hitherto below-average levels of success in GCSE exams.
	Supporting Sefton council's IMPACT project which provides vocational experiences for pupils who find traditional school subjects are not for them.

South Sefton Partnership

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps have been taken by the South Sefton Partnership to create safe, healthy, and managed neighbourhoods.

Yvette Cooper: This is one of South Sefton Partnership's four key objectives. The Partnership has recently prepared a small booklet "South Sefton Partnership—The Story So Far" which aims to illustrate steps taken to date on these four key objectives.
	The steps taken in respect of this objective are as follows:
	Establishing the Green It Clean It Mean It environment fund which provided each Neighbourhood Action Group with 10,000 to undertake local 'green' improvements.
	Supporting the new-build premises of the successful Feelgood Factory health initiative which will provide advice on healthy living, training courses, alternative therapies and a crèche.
	Employing an Active Communities Co-ordinator to give South Sefton residents improved access to sports opportunities.
	Funding a new mobile police station for the area to improve relationships with local communities, provide a more visible police presence. A new community safety officer post has been created.
	Funding an Environmental Hit Squad in the Linacre/Derby area to improve the physical appearance and cleanliness of the neighbourhood and look at ways to reduce the rat population.
	Working with Sefton Council Housing Market Renewal on a £500,000 alleygating initiative to improve the local environment and reduce crime in terraced street across South Sefton.
	Creating the post of a Co-ordinator to work with the Neighbourhood Action Groups on developing and implementing community safety projects.
	Funding important feasibility studies into the restoration of Bootle Derby Park and upgrading the local stretch of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal.

Written Ministerial Statements

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many Written Ministerial Statements have been made by the Department since 29 October 2002.

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has made 130 Written Ministerial Statements since 29 October 2002.

PRIME MINISTER

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Prime Minister when he intends to reply to the letter dated 12 August 2003 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to a new post office for Rusholme.

Tony Blair: I replied to my right hon. Friend on 12 September 2003.

Director of Public Prosecutions

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what contact took place between 10 Downing street and (a) the members of the panel which selected Mr. Ken Macdonald QC as Director of Public Prosecutions and (b) Mr. Ken Macdonald QC during the process of the decision-making on the appointment;
	(2)  if he will list the (a) dates and (b) attendees of meetings which took place between 10 Downing street (i) officials and (ii) civil servants with members of the selection panel which appointed Mr. Ken Macdonald QC as Director of Public Prosecutions.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. and learned Friend the Solicitor-General gave to him today.

Iraq

Adam Price: To ask the Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his pre-war assessment of the challenges of post-Saddam Iraq.

Tony Blair: The scale of the reconstruction task in Iraq caused by decades of neglect and misrule was greater than expected. But good progress in Iraq is being made despite security setbacks, and Saddam's appalling legacy. The Iraqi Governing Council has appointed Ministers, work is under way on preparing a new constitution, institutions are being rebuilt, the international financial community is engaging, children are receiving better health care and education, and work is in hand to improve the infrastructure deficiencies. We are also giving urgent priority to building up the Police Force, Civil Defence Corps and New Iraqi Army, so that Iraqis assume greater responsibility for their own security.

Ministerial Visits

David Amess: To ask the Prime Minister when he next plans to visit Southend, West.

Tony Blair: I have no plans to visit in the near future.

Security Clearance

Julian Lewis: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his answer of 8 September 2003, Official Report, column 18W, on Security Clearance, what further clearance is required for Downing street staff in order to see (a) secret and (b) top secret Joint Intelligence Committee material, once they have been positively vetted.

Tony Blair: The levels of security clearance that staff need in order to be granted access to classified material are those which apply across Government. They are set out in HM Government's statement of vetting policy, as announced to the House on 15 December 1994, Official Report, columns 764–66.

DEFENCE

Aircraft Carriers

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what increase in cost for the proposed two new aircraft carriers has been communicated to him; what reasons were given; what his response has been; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 1 September, Official Report, column 894W, to the hon. Member for New Forest, East (Dr. Lewis).

Apache Helicopter

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to upgrade and replace the night-vision system on the Apache helicopter.

Adam Ingram: An upgrade of Apache's night vision system has been identified as one of a range of possible enhancements to the helicopter during its service life. However, no decision has yet been made on this specific element.

Asbestos

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 26 June 2003, Official Report, column 944W, on asbestos, if he will list the buildings identified as containing asbestos.

Ivor Caplin: There is no central register of buildings in which asbestos is known to be present. Such a register or list could be compiled only at disproportionate cost.

Battle Group Thermal Imaging System

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress is being made in the procurement of the Battle Group Thermal Imaging System; on which platforms it will be deployed; when it is likely to come into service; and what capability it will bring.

Adam Ingram: A contract to supply and support the Battle Group Thermal Imaging System was placed with Thales Optronics Ltd. in 2001. The system is on track to meet its approved in-service date in 2004. It will be deployed on Warrior armoured fighting vehicles and Scimitar combat reconnaissance vehicles and will further improve the effectiveness of armoured combat formations at night and in bad weather.

Defence Exhibition

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) civilian security personnel and (b) armed services personnel his Department assigned to the Defence Systems Equipment International Exhibition in London; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The security arrangements for Defence Systems Equipment International, including the assignment of civilian security personnel, were the responsibility of the exhibition organisers (Spearhead Exhibitions Ltd.). 31 Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) officers were deployed to the exhibition site, with an additional small marine unit of 12 MDP officers being present at the request of the Metropolitan police.
	Ministry of Defence civilian and armed forces personnel attended the event in an official capacity, but details are not held centrally.

Defence Exhibition

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for which foreign delegations attending the Defence Systems and Equipment International exhibition in September the Government paid for (a) travel, (b) accommodation and (c) hospitality; and if he will make a statement.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the country delegations (a) invited to and (b) attending the Defence Systems Equipment International Exhibition in London; what role his Department had in formulating the list of invited countries; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Most of the funding for the attendance of official overseas defence delegations at the Defence Systems and Equipment International exhibition was provided by the exhibition organisers and defence companies.
	However, in addition, the official overseas delegations that attended the exhibition as guests of Her Majesty's Government accepted some contribution from the Ministry of Defence towards their visit for travel, accommodation and/or hospitality.
	The MOD Defence Export Services Organisation prepares a list of countries to receive official invitations to the exhibition, taking into consideration current marketing campaigns and longer-term prospects for business with the countries concerned. The list is then passed to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for consideration. Throughout the process, political issues, arms embargoes and current international relations imperatives are also considered, as is the cost involved in hosting the delegations.
	Of the 62 countries invited to attend the exhibition as guests of HMG, 56 accepted. The list of countries invited to attend is as listed, with the countries that declined highlighted in italic.
	Algeria
	Australia
	Austria
	Bahrain
	Belgium
	Botswana
	Brazil
	Brunei
	Bulgaria
	Canada
	Chile
	Colombia
	PRC (China)
	Czech Republic
	Denmark
	Egypt
	Finland
	France
	Germany
	Ghana
	Greece
	Hungary
	India
	Republic of Ireland
	Italy
	Japan
	Jordan
	Kazakhstan
	Kenya
	Republic of Korea
	Kuwait
	Malaysia
	Mexico
	Netherlands
	New Zealand
	Nigeria
	Norway
	Oman
	Pakistan
	Peru
	Philippines
	Poland
	Portugal
	Qatar
	Romania
	Russia
	Saudi Arabia
	Singapore
	Slovakia
	Slovenia
	South Africa
	Spain
	Sweden
	Switzerland 1
	Syria
	Thailand
	Trinidad & Tobago
	Turkey
	UAE
	USA
	Vietnam
	Venezuela
	1 The official overseas delegation from Switzerland was unable to attend.
	The exhibition organisers, Spearhead Exhibitions Ltd. have also invited country delegations. Their invitees are military/Government personnel who are below ministerial or chief of staff level, as well as industrial visitors, and invitations are extended to reflect the requirements made by exhibitors as well as London based embassies, in consultation with United Kingdom defence attaches based overseas.
	At the outset of the invitation process Spearhead may take advice from MOD about the attendance of particular countries or exhibitors. However, provided they act responsibly and within the law, Spearhead is not obliged to take that advice. Requests for release of information on the delegations invited by the organisers should be directed to the company.

Defence Exhibition

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost to his Department was of the Defence Systems and Equipment International Exhibition at the Excel Centre on 9 to 12 September; how many departmental staff were present; and if he will make a statement on the purpose of hosting arms sales fairs.

Adam Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Islington, North (Jeremy Corbyn) on 20 May 2003, Official Report, columns 677–78W. The final cost remains to be established, but we do not expect it to exceed the estimated figure.
	Ministry of Defence staff attended the Defence Systems and Equipment International (DSEi) exhibition as part of their normal duties and to gain greater understanding of defence industrial capabilities around the world. This was at the discretion of line managers and no central record of attendance is held.
	The purpose of defence exhibitions is to bring together purchasers and suppliers of defence equipment and services. DSEi enables the United Kingdom defence industry to demonstrate its capabilities to potential overseas customers and provides an opportunity for those responsible for the defence of their countries to see the range of equipment and services available to meet their legitimate requirements. Formal invitations to DSEi do not imply that Her Majesty's Government would be prepared to issue export licences for the supply of all or any of the equipment displayed, and all export licence applications would be considered on a case-by-case basis in line with the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria.

Export Controls

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has had with the US State Department on (a) the use of extraterritorial export control legislation and (b) the need to have strict end-user controls on arms shipments, to reduce threats to military personnel.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 16 September 2003
	A range of issues have been discussed with the United States Government in the context of the negotiations, concluded earlier this year, on a text for an unclassified waiver from the US International Traffic in Arms Regulations. These have included consideration of extraterritorial control in relation to the export of strategically controlled goods, but not specifically of end-user controls. The national security of the United Kingdom and its allies is considered at the time an application for a licence to export is made, under the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria.

Iraq

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate (a) the length of time in training that British army units require before deployment in Iraq and (b) the ratio of deployed personnel to total personnel absorbed by operations in Iraq.

Adam Ingram: The duration of pre-deployment training for military forces deploying on operations depends on two factors: firstly, the existing level of training, which is closely aligned to readiness, and, secondly, the operational task the force is required to undertake. The amount of pre-deployment training required is therefore dictated by the extent to which the troops need to raise their military capability, and it is not meaningful to specify set periods of time.
	As at 11 September there were approximately 10,000 British servicemen and women in the Gulf region. Following the deployment of the balance of the forces announced by the Secretary of State on 8 September this figure will shortly rise to approximately 10,500. Beyond this it is not possible to quantify accurately the total number of people within the Department whose work touches on current operations in Iraq. This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Iraq

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps are being taken by the Government to ensure that an effective trial-or-release system for Iraqi prisoners is operating in Iraq.

Geoff Hoon: The Coalition is working with the Iraqi people to establish a fair and just legal system, and estimates that some 100 courts are now in operation across the country.

Iraq

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the results of the inquiry into the al Majarr al Kabir incident will be published; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 4 July 2003
	The Ministry of Defence is determined to do all we can to establish the facts, and to bring to account those responsible for the deaths of the six RMP soldiers killed so tragically in Iraq in June. It is not possible to say how long this investigation will take.

Iraq

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 8 September 2003, Official Report, column 46W, on civil servants working in Iraq, if he will report on a weekly basis how many civil servants are searching for weapons of mass destruction.

Adam Ingram: The number of civilian staff working for the Iraq Survey Group on a weekly basis is as follows:
	
		
			 Week ending Number of staff 
		
		
			 2003  
			 13 June 2 
			 20 June 6 
			 27 June 7 
			 4 July 7 
			 11 July 7 
			 18 July 15 
			 25 July 15 
			 1 August 15 
			 8 August 15 
			 15 August 18 
			 22 August 19 
			 29 August 19 
			 5 September 19 
			 12 September 19

Naval Procurement

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in establishing the Maritime Afloat Reach and Sustainability Project; what will new design ships will be procured; what capabilities this will bring; and if he will make a statement on how they will improve flexibility and responsiveness.

Adam Ingram: The Military Afloat Reach and Sustain (MARS) project is now reaching the end of its Concept Phase, in which the Support Requirement is defined and a plan for procuring it in the most cost-effective and efficient way is established. It is anticipated that the project will progress to its Assessment phase before the end of this year. During the Assessment phase the project team will invite industry to provide solutions to this requirement, including ship designs, and will establish how new technologies, vessel designs and logistics concepts can deliver the increases in flexibility and responsiveness our future forces will require.
	The afloat support capability provided by the MARS programme is essential if the United Kingdom is to maintain the ability to deploy joint forces worldwide to engage in operations where Host Nation Support cannot be guaranteed. As an enabling capability, its effectiveness will be measured by its ability to support our future forces and concepts of operation.

Recruitment

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people were recruited to the armed forces since January for (a) each of the recruitment posts in Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: Statistics for officer recruitment are not broken down by region. The numbers of other rank enlistments for all three Services in each month since January 2003 are detailed in the following table.
	
		
			  January February March April May June July August September(1) Total 
		
		
			 RN/RM   
			 Scotland:   
			 Aberdeen 5 4 8 0 9 5 8 2 0 41 
			 Dundee 10 10 21 10 14 19 7 4 0 95 
			 Edinburgh 11 12 25 6 11 15 8 9 0 97 
			 Glasgow 11 10 19 4 11 19 12 4 0 90 
			 Inverness 4 5 7 0 2 2 4 0 0 24 
			 England 459 423 469 150 355 428 282 164 0 2,730 
			 Wales 29 26 21 6 21 26 16 10 0 155 
			 Northern Ireland 9 9 8 6 9 5 3 10 0 59 
			
			 Army   
			 Scotland:   
			 Aberdeen 20 14 3 4 4 1 6 11 11 74 
			 Dundee 69 20 15 19 13 7 20 40 37 240 
			 Edinburgh 51 19 13 14 16 8 14 28 26 189 
			 Glasgow 153 86 49 49 44 21 58 68 95 623 
			 Inverness 20 12 5 10 8 2 8 10 17 92 
			 England 2,178 925 817 714 767 687 779 1,045 1,382 9,294 
			 Wales 178 80 61 70 66 50 38 66 105 714 
			 Northern Ireland 53 19 24 13 12 12 8 28 11 180 
			
			 RAF   
			 Scotland:   
			 Aberdeen 0 2 5 4 3 1 4 5 4 28 
			 Dundee 6 8 10 13 6 7 3 8 3 64 
			 Edinburgh 7 7 9 4 9 1 9 5 3 54 
			 Glasgow 10 18 9 14 9 9 12 10 4 95 
			 Inverness 2 5 7 9 5 2 5 2 3 40 
			 England 140 332 305 273 250 172 279 201 83 2,035 
			 Wales 13 28 29 44 36 12 42 20 17 241 
			 Northern Ireland 1 5 9 4 2 2 6 3 1 33 
		
	
	(1) Figures give the position as at 12 September 2003. No figures available for RN/RM.

War Pensions Agency

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the proposal to redefine the eligibility criteria for disablement through the War Pensions Agency.

Ivor Caplin: There are no plans to change the eligibility criteria used for decisions under the War Pensions Scheme. I refer my hon. Friend to the details of my statement to the House of 15 September 2003, Official Report, columns 39–40WS. I can confirm that there will be no effect on existing war pensioners. Decisions on whether a condition was caused or significantly aggravated by service will be evidence-based, using a 'balance of probabilities' standard of proof. This is in line with the approach of the civil courts and other modern compensation arrangements. All decisions will be appealable to a fully independent tribunal.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Civil Compensation Cases

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many civil compensation actions have been brought against the employer of the abusing child carer in the UK in each of the past five years.

Christopher Leslie: The information requested is not collected centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Community Legal Service

David Lidington: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what proportion of the population living in (a) rural and (b) urban areas has access to services provided by Community Legal Service Partnerships.

David Lammy: To date, Community Legal Service Partnerships cover over 99 per cent. of the population of England and Wales and so include nearly all rural and urban areas. Although the provision of services within the Community Legal Service (CLS) falls to individually contracted providers, each CLS partnership has responsibility for advising on the co-ordination and planning of local service delivery. Data produced by the CLS partnerships, particularly in relation to priority legal needs, helps to inform the allocation of CLS resources through the contracting system. Along with policy developments, such as the Partnership Initiative Budget (PIB) and the Method of Delivery Pilots, the Legal Services Commission ensures that there is both adequate and improving service provision across all regions in England and Wales.

Court Attire

Lady Hermon: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many responses were received to the Court Working Dress Consultation Paper; and if he will make a statement on the responses received.

Christopher Leslie: The consultation period for comments closed on 14 August and 3,406 responses were received.
	The responses are currently being analysed and the Government will make a statement in due course.

Mental Incapacity Bill

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what representations he has received regarding the length of the consultation for the draft Mental Incapacity Bill.

David Lammy: My Department has received four letters to Ministers about the length of the consultation period set up by the Pre-legislative Committee which is examining the draft Mental Incapacity Bill.

Sheriffs

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many claims for negligence, errors or omissions have been made against under sheriffs in each of the last three years; what was (a) the highest claim, (b) the average claim and (c) the total value of claims; what was the total paid in settlement of claims for each of the last three years; what plans he has to indemnify sheriffs against liability for claims against under sheriffs; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The information requested is not available. The courts do not maintain statistics on the identity or role of defendants; nor does the Department employ or have direct responsibility for under sheriffs.
	We do, however, consider the responsibility for enforcement of High Court writs as an onerous one for sheriffs to undertake, as their position is a voluntary one, and that responsibility extends for up to six years following their term of office. Therefore we are relieving them of this responsibility through measures contained in the Courts Bill. Present insurance arrangements made by under sheriffs cover the possibility of litigation for the duration of a high sheriffs responsibility. The matter of continuing cover once new measures are brought in is under careful consideration by the representatives of those who undertake this work and wish to continue to do so as well as those who represent under sheriffs and high sheriffs. We have no plans to indemnify sheriffs from public funds.

Sheriffs

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the duties of the office of sheriff consist of (a) formally and (b) informally; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: High sheriffs are technically responsible for the enforcement of High Court writs, but this is, in practice, carried out on their behalf by under sheriffs, and this duty will be removed from high sheriffs by legislation currently before Parliament. The traditional role of the high sheriff is to escort to court and offer hospitality to High Court judges who visit their area. Informal duties are entirely a matter for individual sheriffs, who also have an informal representational role for their county. The office is unpaid, and the expenses are borne personally by the incumbent. High sheriffs receive no public funds, other than a small allowance for days when they attend judges in court.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Disability Living Allowance

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have appealed disability living allowance decisions in each year since 1997; what proportion were successful in an appeal; and what reasons people give for appealing initial decisions.

Maria Eagle: This is a matter for Christina Townsend, Chief Executive of the Appeals Service. She will write to the hon. Member.
	Letter from Christina Townsend to Mr. James Wray, dated 17 September 2003
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question regarding the number of people who have appealed Disability Living Allowance decisions in each year since 1997, what proportion were successful in an appeal and what reasons people gave for appealing the initial decisions.
	We do not have information on the total number of appeals against Disability Living Allowance decisions nor the reasons why initial decisions were appealed. The attached table shows the number of appeals relating to Disability Living Allowance decisions which were received by the Appeals Service; the number cleared with or without a hearing; the number found in favour of the appellant and the percentage found in favour of the appellant for each year since 1998. We began collecting information for the first full year in 1998 and therefore no information is available for 1997.
	I hope this reply is helpful.
	
		Disability Living Allowance appeals received by the Appeals Service, cleared at hearing or without a hearing, found in favour of the appellant at hearing and the percentage found in favour of the appellant each year since 1998.
		
			  Number 
			  Caseload Received at the Appeals Service Non hearing clearances Cleared at hearing Found in favour Percentage found in favour 
		
		
			 1998 1,980,200 62,925 2,255 42,950 20,330 47.3 
			 1999 2,042,300 40,260 7,165 51,680 25,170 48.7 
			 2000 2,110,200 95,160 18,270 63,050 31,065 49.3 
			 2001 2,210,600 87,295 22,610 86,285 45,165 52.3 
			 2002 2,322,800 82,345 20,880 72,815 39,490 54.2 
			 January 2003 toJuly 2003 2,468,900 46,940 11,715 41,655 22,470 53.9 
		
	
	Notes:
	All figures are subject to change as more up-to-date data becomes available. Figures for the latest months will rise significantly as information feeds through to the Appeals Service. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5 and percentages to 1 decimal place.
	Source:
	1AD Information Centre, 100% sample.
	Caseload notes:
	1. Cases where payment of benefit has been suspended are excluded
	2. Taken from a 5 per cent. sample therefore figures may be subject to sampling variation.
	3. Caseload as at February each year rounded to the nearest 100.
	Source::
	1AD Information Centre, 5 per cent. sample

Disability Living Allowance

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proposals he has to speed up the appeals process for disability living allowance.

Maria Eagle: This is a matter for Christina Townsend Chief Executive of the Appeals Service. She will write to the hon. Member.
	Letter from Christina Townsend to Mr. James Wray, dated 17 September 2003
	The Secretary of State has asked me to respond to your question regarding the proposals that are in place to speed up the appeals process for Disability Living Allowance.
	The Appeals Service Agency is committed to a twin strategy of reducing waiting times and clearing the backlog of older cases that accrue. We have made a determined effort to tackle older cases based on the policy of "first in first out". Wherever possible cases are cleared at first hearing. The average time from a Disability Living Allowance appeal being received by the Appeals Service to being cleared has reduced from 31.1 weeks, in 1998, to 15.1 weeks for the period January 2003–July 2003.
	I hope this reply is helpful.

Disability Handbook

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans the Government have to update the 1998 Disability Handbook to include a guide on the needs of adults with autistic spectrum disorders.

Maria Eagle: The Department intends to improve and update the medical guidance currently provided to decision-makers. This will be based on information technology that will enable the guidance to be more comprehensive and easier to access. The guidance on all conditions contained in the Disability Handbook, including autistic spectrum disorder in children and adults, will be revised as part of this initiative. A programme for this work is being developed.

Disabled Employees

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures are in place to ensure that companies provide the necessary access improvements and assistance for disabled employees; and what financial support can be made available for companies to make the changes.

Maria Eagle: The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) requires that employers consider making a 'reasonable adjustment' to premises, working practices, or other aspects of a job, if a disabled employee or job applicant would otherwise be at a disadvantage compared to someone else. Improved access, or the provision of various types of personal or technological assistance might constitute reasonable adjustments. The Disability Rights Commission (DRC) advises employees, employers and the general public on the law.
	Redress for failure to make reasonable adjustments is via Employment Tribunals.
	The Access to Work programme provides a grant towards the additional employment costs resulting from disability. Help available can include adaptations to premises, special aids and equipment, help with travel to work, and personal support in the workplace.
	Access to Work pays 100 per cent. of the approved costs where an individual is starting a new job, or has been in their job for less than six weeks. It also pays full costs for people in self-employment and where assistance with travel to work, support workers or communicators for job interviews is required.
	In all other cases Access to Work meets up to 80 per cent. of costs above a threshold of 300 and below a ceiling of £10,000 and 100 per cent. of costs above £10,000, over a three year period.

Forestry

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will meet the Association of British Insurers to discuss the level of employers' compulsory liability insurance premiums in the forestry industry.

Des Browne: Ministers will meet the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and insurers to discuss the level of Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance premiums and their impacts on businesses in general. The Department is undertaking a review of Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance and has already had a number of meetings with the Association of British Insurers and other organisations. We will report progress and next steps arising out of this second stage of the review, in autumn.

Jobcentre Advisers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average number of days wait is before an unemployed person's initial appointment with a jobcentre adviser; what research his Department has conducted into the particular problems faced in waiting for appointments by agency workers who become unemployed for short periods of time on a regular basis; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive, David Anderson. I have asked him to reply to the hon. Member.
	Letter from David Anderson to Mr. Oliver Heald, dated 16 July 2003
	As Jobcentre Plus is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning the average number of days an unemployed person has to wait for their initial appointment with a Jobcentre Plus advisor and the particular problems faced by agency workers who become unemployed for short periods of time on a regular basis. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
	We want to give everyone who needs our help the best possible service, including providing them with prompt appointments when they are needed. Our Customer Charter, which details the level of service customers can expect from Jobcentre Plus, states our aim to make sure interviews, including initial interviews at the beginning of a claim, are undertaken within four working days of the customer making initial contact. This aim applies to all our customers, including agency workers.
	We do not collect data about the number of days unemployed people have to wait for an initial interview with a Jobcentre Plus adviser. However, we do have a target for the end to end processing of new claims which includes the time leading up to the initial interview. Our target is to make the first payment within 12 days of initial contact about a claim and I am pleased to say that the average clearance time for Jobseeker's Allowance is currently only 10.5 days.
	I hope this is helpful and assures you of our intent to provide people with the best possible service.

Targeting Fraud Website

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many hits the Targeting Fraud website has received; how many cases of suspected fraud have been reported to the website; how many of these suspected cases have been investigated; how many of them have led to a successful prosecution; and how many of them have led to a custodial sentence.

Chris Pond: Information is not collated centrally on sentences imposed by the courts where successful prosecutions have resulted from the Targeting Fraud Website. The available information is in the table.
	
		Targeting fraud website
		
			  Number of hits Number of 'report a cheat' forms submitted Number of cases accepted for investigation Number of successful prosecutions 
		
		
			 2000–01(2) 1,431,093 3,808 319 0 
			 2001–02 222,421 8,453 1,067 4 
			 2002–03 123,575 8,309 1,201 20 
		
	
	(2) The 'report a cheat' online form was introduced in May 2000.

TRANSPORT

Counter-terrorism

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the purpose was of the counter-terrorism exercise held on 7 September. [R]

Tony McNulty: The exercise held at Bank tube station on Sunday 7 September was designed to test the co-ordinated response of the emergency services to a chemical release on a train on the London Underground. The exercise involved rescue and decontamination both at the scene and at a hospital. It also tested the use of new equipment and procedures for the emergency services.

Counter-terrorism

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost was of holding the simulated terrorist attack at the Bank underground station and its surrounds on 7 September; what lessons were learned from the exercise; and whether the exercise dealt with the requirements of decontamination of the site of the simulated dirty radioactive bomb.

Tony McNulty: As with other exercises designed to test the preparedness of the emergency services, the costs are being borne by the participating organisations, whose budgets naturally include general funding for training and exercising.
	Our early view is that the elements we planned to test in this exercise worked well. A full assessment is currently being carried out. There will of course be lessons to learn for all those involved.
	The exercise was based on a simulated release of a chemical agent on a train stuck in the London underground and was designed to test new equipment and procedures for rescuing and decontaminating people trapped on the train. The exercise was not designed to test site decontamination or the response to a dirty radioactive bomb.

Cyprus Turkish Airlines

David Marshall: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many complaints (a) he and (b) the Civil Aviation Authority have received about cancellations and delays affecting flights operated by Cyprus Turkish Airlines; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: No complaints have been made to the Department for Transport relating to the cancellation and delays affecting flights by Cyprus Turkish Airlines. The Air Transport Users Council, which was set up by the Civil Aviation Authority, has received four written complaints and two by telephone since April this year.

Devolution (Transport Services)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 9 September 2003, ref 127778, which (a) Minister and (b) devolved Administration is responsible for (i) ferry services and (ii) air services between (A) England and Northern Ireland, (B) Wales and Northern Ireland, (C) Scotland and Northern Ireland and (D) Scotland and Wales.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 16 September 2003
	Ferry and air services between different parts of the UK are generally reserved matters, and the Secretary of State for Transport has policy responsibility. Explicit provision was made last year for the devolved Administrations in Scotland and Northern Ireland to take responsibility for financial support for a possible ferry service between Campbeltown and Ballycastle.

East Midlands Airport

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made with the decision on whether to open a second runway at East Midlands airport.

Tony McNulty: We are currently considering the responses to the airports' consultation. These will inform our final conclusions on airport capacity which will be published in an Air Transport White Paper later this year.

Flight Cancellations

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what statutory duty of care airlines have towards passengers whose flights have been cancelled.

Tony McNulty: UK airlines currently have no statutory duty of care to passengers with regard to cancelled flights. However, all the significant "full-service" UK airlines (both scheduled and charter) have signed up to the Airline Voluntary Commitments on Air Passenger Rights, developed in 2001 under the guidance of the European Commission and the European Civil Aviation Conference. These commitments contain non-legally binding agreements to deliver defined standards of service to air travellers in a number of key areas, including the prompt notification of known delays, cancellations and diversions.
	At the Transport Council in December 2002 the European Community reached political agreement on a proposal from the European Commission for a regulation establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to air passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delays of flights. We expect this regulation, which is currently under discussion between the Council, the European Parliament and the Commission to become law during 2004.

Green Transport

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which green transport initiatives the Government have supported in the Merseyside PTA area in (a) 2001–02, (b) 2002–03 and (c) 2003–04.

Tony McNulty: The Government expect local authorities to reflect the principles of sustainable development in their Local Transport Plans (LTPs). They are, for example, required to show how their LTPs will reduce CO2 emissions from transport sources, how they would contribute to tackling air quality problems, and how they would minimise noise impacts. The Government, through their funding of LTPs, aim to deliver better environmental outcomes across the whole range of Local Transport Plan schemes and initiatives. It would therefore be misleading to identify "green transport initiatives" separately—environmental issues are fully integrated into wider local transport policy.
	The Merseyside local authorities have reported in detail on their delivery of schemes and initiatives in LTP Annual Progress Reports, covering 2001–02 and 2002–03.

Parliamentary Questions

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many questions directed to him remain unanswered.

Tony McNulty: The effective handling of parliamentary questions is an issue to which I, and ministerial colleagues, attach great importance. At 15 September 2003, my Department had 43 unanswered parliamentary questions. Of these, eight were named day questions for answer on 16 September 2003 and 35 were ordinary written questions which by convention are answered within one working week of appearing in the Order Book.

Sky Marshals

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  who will cover the employment costs of sky marshals;
	(2)  how many sky marshals are available for duty on (a) UK airlines and (b) airlines flying into and out of the UK;
	(3)  how many sky marshals are being trained; and how long their training lasts;
	(4)  what the expected establishment of sky marshals will be;
	(5)  whether sky marshals are authorised to carry (a) firearms and (b) other weapons;
	(6)  whether (a) UK airlines and (b) foreign airlines are required (i) to opt in and (ii) to opt out of using sky marshals; and if he will list the airlines that have (A) opted in and (B) opted out.

Tony McNulty: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport made a written statement on 19 December last year on the capability which has been developed to place specially trained armed police officers aboard UK civil aircraft. Security reasons preclude making public operational details of that capability. Other countries, with an equivalent capability in respect of flights by their own airlines, have adopted a similar approach.

Sky Marshals

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how many special marshals he has appointed; and from which budget funding for special marshals will come;
	(2)  what powers special marshals will have if a person refuses to hand over (a) alcohol and (b) cigarettes.

Tony McNulty: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given today to the hon. Member for Carshalton & Wallington (Mr. Brake).

Transport Projects (Warrington)

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many projects his Department has supported in Warrington since 1997; and how much funding was allocated to each project.

Tony McNulty: In April 1998 Warrington became a unitary authority; prior to that they were part of Cheshire. The funding figures for 1997 and 1998 are not readily available.
	The Department for Transport has provided Warrington with funding £11.342 million over the last two financial years. The Department has accepted the urban traffic management control major project, and has provisionally accepted two other major projects, Bridgefoot environmental enhancement and Warrington town centre bus interchange.
	Details of the schemes and spend can be found in Warrington's annual progress report.

TravelSafe Scheme

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how he has measured the success of the TravelSafe scheme; and what the cost of the scheme has been to date.

David Jamieson: TravelSafe is a local partnership initiative, led by the Merseytravel Passenger Transport Executive to deal with crime on public transport in their area. My Department has taken an interest in this and other anti-transport crime initiatives throughout the country as part of its on-going work commitment to reduce crime and the fear of crime wherever it occurs on the transport system. In February 2003, Merseytravel reported to the Government's Safer Travel on Buses and Coaches Panel on the successes of the initiative. The Department for Transport has not funded this initiative and we hold no information on its cost to date.

MINISTER FOR WOMEN

Public Appointments

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister for Women what progress she has made in increasing the proportion of women appointed to public bodies.

Patricia Hewitt: The percentage of women on the boards of public bodies at 31 March 2003,was 35.7 per cent., up from 34 per cent. in March 2002. The Government remain committed to the aim that by the end of 2005, and for the majority of departments, women should hold 45–50 per cent. of the appointments to the bodies they sponsor.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

EU Enlargement

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received from EU non-applicant states bordering the enlarged EU on access to the Single Market after enlargement.

Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, met with the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Mr. Kudrin on 26 June this year, and also in October 2002. During both these meetings the issue of current and future Russian access to EU markets was raised.

Computer Viruses

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has for reducing the threat from computer viruses.

Stephen Timms: Malicious software—including viruses—is a global phenomenon. No one Government can eliminate the development and spread of malicious software but the Government are playing their part in a range of activities to minimise the impact on users. We are talking to vendors about improving the identification of vulnerabilities in software and the underlying protocols. We are working with industry to disseminate advice about the availability of solutions to the problems which are identified and how to deal with the difficulties posed by events, such as viruses, which exploit those vulnerabilities. The Department has taken a prominent role in the promotion of good information security management and has developed promotional material aimed at helping smaller companies understand and deal with common security problems. The detection and prosecution of those who create malicious software is the responsibility of the Home Office and Section 3 of the Computer Misuse Act already criminalises the unauthorised modification of the contents of any computer, which includes modifications caused by viruses. My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is, however, reviewing the effectiveness of the Act and, as part of this process, will consider whether any further legislation is required to further deter those who write or knowingly disseminate computer viruses.

Departmental Computer Security

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much has been (a) budgeted and (b) spent by her Department since April 2002 on (i) combating computer fraud, (ii) preventing theft of computers and (iii) safeguarding the security of information held on computer; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: It is not possible to separately identify the budgets and costs requested as they are spread across a number of areas including:
	The overall IT service cost from our outsourced IT services provider;
	Individual project development and system operating costs;
	Overall physical and building security costs;
	IT systems and network (including firewall) management costs;
	Overall Internal Audit effort;
	Staff recruitment and training costs.

Electricity Generation

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much electricity has been used in the UK in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how much has been used in this year so far.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 16 September 2003
	The available information is shown in the following table.
	
		Electricity used in the UK
		
			  TWh 
		
		
			 1998 345.4 
			 1999 352.5 
			 2000 360.1 
			 2001 363.1 
			 2002 364.7 
			 2003(3) 189.8 
		
	
	(3) First half
	Source:
	DTI Energy Trends

EU Tariffs

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the EU tariffs on textiles and clothing imports from (a) India, (b) Sri Lanka and (c) the United States; and if she will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: There are over 1,000 individual EU tariff lines covering imports of textiles and clothing so it is not possible to list them individually. These duties are applicable to all countries including USA, India and Sri Lanka and range from 0 per cent. to 12.2 per cent. Both India and Sri Lanka benefit from preferential arrangements with the EU that give lower duties for textile and clothing products.

Everything but Arms Agreement

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 14 June, Official Report, column 17W, on the Everything but Arms Agreement, what proportion of total trade exports to the United Kingdom are represented by (a) sugar, (b) oil, (c) tobacco, (d) cotton and (e) olive oil regimes for (i) least developed countries and (ii) non-least developed countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Patricia Hewitt: To obtain such information would require extracting information on a large number of commodity codes for 51 countries and therefore could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Export Control

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the feasibility of using (a) mutual and (b) multilateral legal assistance treaties to allow the UK Government to develop effective end-user controls of arms shipments from the UK.

Denis MacShane: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government have a system for the post-export monitoring of UK-origin arms. Where there is a case of diversion or fraud by a private individual, we look to co-operate with the authorities of friendly countries to bring the perpetrators to justice. Legal assistance treaties are of little use in cases of alleged misuse by Governments.

Export Licences

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the export licences that have been granted to Royal Ordnance for the export of TNT to the USA in the past three years.

Nigel Griffiths: holding answer 15 September 2003
	A list of all UK export licences is published in the Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls. However, details of export licence applications from particular companies are normally commercially confidential and exempt from disclosure under categories 13 and 14 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Gangmasters

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to introduce a system of registration for gangmasters to ensure minimum standards of health and safety training for the staff they provide.

Ben Bradshaw: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government are working with organisations and businesses in the food chain to draw up a code of practice for gangmasters in the agriculture and fresh produce sectors and to devise a system of accreditation gangmasters who abide by this standard. The aim is to test whether a voluntary accreditation scheme combined with a readiness by businesses in the food chain to use accredited labour can achieve an improvement in employment practices in the sector. The option of a statutory registration requirement has not been ruled out if the accreditation approach proves insufficient. The proposed code of practice and the standard it will set would be a key element in either approach.

Higgs Review

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps her Department has taken to implement the findings of the Higgs review of the role and effectiveness of non-executive directors.

Jacqui Smith: The Government warmly welcomed the Higgs Review. The majority of the recommendations of the Review were for changes to the Combined Code. The Code is the responsibility of the Financial Reporting Council, which published a revised Code on 23 July this year. The Government believe that this will provide a clear and robust framework to improve the performance of boards and increase investor confidence.
	Following the Higgs Review, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State asked Professor Laura Tyson, Dean of the London Business School, to consider how a broader range of non-executives might be identified and recruited in order to improve board effectiveness. Laura Tyson's report was published on 19 June. The Department of Trade and Industry s currently engaging with various stakeholders in order to take forward Professor Tyson's recommendations.
	The Higgs Review also recommended the development of guidance on directors' and officers' insurance. The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators are currently developing this.

IT Security

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she has taken to review the security of the Department's IT system; and how many digital attacks there were on the Department's system in the last six months.

Patricia Hewitt: All DTI IT systems are designed in accordance with HMG IT security policy.
	The core Department's internal IT system undergoes a regular cycle of security testing in line with its security policy. In addition, the processes and procedures of those parts of the Department responsible for overseeing its IT services are subjected to six monthly independent audit as part of our certification of compliance with BS 7799 Part 2.
	During the past six months, one attempted digital attack was identified which failed.

Nanotechnology

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assistance is given to companies researching nanotechnology; what proposals she has to increase its use in British industry; and if she will make a statement on (a) its future and (b) the improvements it can bring.

Patricia Hewitt: Support for nanotechnology research and training in excess of £125 million over the last six years has been provided by OST, via the Research Councils, to UK universities. This has laid a solid foundation for future commercial investment and exploitation. The SBS "Smart" Scheme has helped many small companies, including university spin-outs, to develop their ideas from this technology. Other initiatives, for example the LINK Basic Technologies for Industrial Applications R&D programme, and other LINK programmes in the electronics, IT, chemicals, materials, and biotechnology sectors; although not dedicated to nanotechnology, have also supported projects that enable UK companies to collaborate with universities and commercially exploit this technology.
	On 2 July my noble Friend the Minister of State for Science and Innovation announced a £90 million programme over the next six years to help industry harness the commercial opportunities offered by nanotechnology. My Department is partnering with the Regional Development Agencies and Devolved Administrations to facilitate regional investment in facilities.

Ofgem

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with Ofgem following their announcement of the possible shortfall in the Roc fund; what measures (a) are being taken and (b) are planned to avoid a shortfall; and what assessment she has made of the impact of this announcement upon the renewables industry.

Stephen Timms: My officials are discussing the possible shortfall with Ofgem, and with representatives from the renewables industry. Since the extent of any possible shortfall will not be clear until 1 October, it is too early at this stage to assess the impact on the renewables market or to propose measures to address the possible shortfall or to avoid the problem recurring in the future.
	In the interim, Ofgem are in communication with the administrators over compliance with the Renewables Obligation.

Productivity Gap

Parmjit Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action she is taking to close the productivity gap with other European Union countries.

Patricia Hewitt: Today my Department publishes its strategy, setting out our priorities for the next five years to narrow the productivity gap with our competitors, including those in the EU. A copy of the strategy has been placed in the Libraries of the House, along with a companion paper setting out the analysis on which the strategy has been built.
	The Strategy focuses on practical action where the Department can have the greatest impact:
	helping business to access the knowledge and ideas it needs to innovate;
	encouraging employers and employees to improve their skills and create more productive, high performing workplaces;
	ensuring the right frameworks exist so that markets are open and fair at home and overseas;
	ensuring that all regions are able to fulfil their economic potential.
	DTI will work in close partnership with its stakeholders, customers and other policy makers to achieve these aims.

Red Tape

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment her Department has made of the number of jobs that have been lost to the British economy as a result of regulations on business introduced since May 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: Since 1997 over 1.5 million jobs have been created within the British economy and the number of people in employment is currently at 27.92 million, the highest since records began in 1984. The claimant count rate of unemployment benefits is the lowest for 27 years.
	A Regulatory Impact Assessment is produced for all regulations that have a cost to or benefit for business as part of the policy development process. These are prepared in consultation with industry and the Small Business Service.

Safeway

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will make an announcement on the proposed takeover bids for the Safeway chain of supermarkets.

Patricia Hewitt: I will announce my decision on the proposed acquisition of Safeway alongside publication of the Competition Commission report. The administrative target for publication of this report is within 30 working days of its receipt from the Competition Commission. As the report was received on 18 August 2003, our aim is to publish by 30 September 2003.

Skills Shortages

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate her Department has made of the annual cost to British businesses, in terms of extra training and lost productivity, of basic skills shortages in the workforce.

Ivan Lewis: I have been asked to reply.
	There is robust evidence that poor literacy and numeracy skills have adverse effects on the earnings and employment prospects of individuals.
	However there is limited evidence on the cost to British businesses of basic skill shortages in the workforce.
	One 1992 study that attempted to quantify the costs to employers of poor basic skills suggested that they were costing companies employing over 50 workers an average of £165,000 a year and for the largest companies (with over 1,000 employees) the costs could be as high as £500,000 per year (equivalent to £208,000 and £626,000 in 2002 prices).
	Based on this evidence, the total cost to UK businesses (employing over 50 workers) of poor basic skill levels was estimated to be in the region of £4.8 billion pounds per annum (£6 billion in 2002 prices).
	These costs are likely to be underestimated, as they do not account for costs associated with lost future business, the need for additional training because staff may be unable to cope with written material, the cost of work that needs to be re-done or the costs incurred by firms with 50 or fewer employees.
	The influential report "Improving Literacy and Numeracy: A Fresh Start" by Sir Claus Moser highlighted further analysis based on this 1992 research study. It suggested that the impact of poor basic skills on the UK economy as a whole could be as high as £10 billion per annum (in 1999 prices).

Stock Exchanges

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the potential establishment of regional and local stock exchange bourses for small and medium sized enterprises.

Nigel Griffiths: Proposals were published by the independent Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation in 2000. I understand that Advantage West Midlands have been developing these ideas, and I have asked for a copy of their proposal.
	I am determined to ensure that all UK companies have access to the finance they need to expand with viable products and services, and the DTI has a number of programmes to assist with this.

World Trade Organisation

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which (a) Ministers and (b) civil servants will be attending the Cancun conference in September; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the Secretary of State for International Development, and my hon. Friend the Minister of State for International Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs and myself attended the Cancun conference.
	We were supported by a total of 32 civil servants from Department of Trade and Industry, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Department for International Development and Her Majesty's Treasury. Each Department was able to deploy its expertise during discussions on the various trade and development issues contained in the Doha Development Agenda.
	I refer the hon. Gentleman to my oral statement to the House earlier today.

World Trade Organisation

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she is having with member states of the European Union on the trade policies that will be presented at the World Trade Organisation conference in Mexico in September; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: I hold regular discussions with European Union member states on issues relating to the current World Trade Organisation Round. These continued during the conference itself.
	I refer the hon. Gentleman to my oral statement to the House earlier today.

World Trade Organisation

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions she has had with (a) ministerial colleagues, (b) NGOs and (c) member states of the European Union on (i) policies and (ii) objectives to be presented at the World Trade Organisation conference in Mexico; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: I have had regular discussions with my ministerial colleagues, NGOs and member states of the European Union on our objectives for the 5th World Trade Organisational Ministerial conference in Cancun. These discussions continued during the conference.
	I refer the hon. Gentleman to my oral statement to the House earlier today.

World Trade Organisation

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the Government's objectives for the Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference in Cancun.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 8 September 2003
	Our main objective for Cancun was to work for a successful outcome to the current round of world trade negotiations that benefits industrialised and developing countries alike. In particular to: (i) secure an ambitious framework for an agreement on agriculture, where the EU has shown its commitment to the Round in agreeing historic changes to the CAP; (ii) press for progress on reducing non-agricultural tariffs, increasing services liberalisation and agreeing special and differential treatment for developing countries. I refer the hon. Gentleman to my oral statement to the House earlier today.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Duty of Care

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action her Department is taking to assist small businesses with the implementation of the Duty of Care Regulations; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has issued a code of practice under section 34(7) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. The purpose of the code of practice is to provide practical guidance to those subject to the duty of care, including small businesses, on how to discharge their obligations under the duty. The code of practice and an explanatory leaflet are available on the Department's website at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/management/doc/index.htm

Radioactive Material

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many sites in the United Kingdom specialise in the disposal of radioactive materials.

Elliot Morley: Disposal of radioactive waste in the UK is regulated by the Environment Agency in England and Wales, the Environment and Heritage Service of the Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in Scotland.
	BNFL's Drigg site in Cumbria specialises in the disposal of low-level solid radioactive waste from Sellafield and other UK sites. Around 850 sites in England and Wales are authorised to dispose of low and very low-level radioactive waste under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993.

Abandoned Vehicles

Ivan Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what initiatives her Department has introduced since 1997 to tackle the problems of abandoned cars.

Elliot Morley: Since its creation in June 2001, Defra introduced on 9 April 2002 regulations reducing the statutory notice periods after which local authorities can remove abandoned vehicles from the highway. Local authorities can now remove those vehicles that they consider merit destruction from the highway after the expiry of a 24 hour notice placed on them.
	Defra is consulting on a proposal to reduce the statutory notice period whereby a landowner can object to the removal of a vehicle(s) abandoned on their land. The consultation closes on 24 October. We aim to introduce a Regulation in the new year to amend the Removal and Disposal of Vehicles Regulations 1986.

Animal Movements

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received on the proposed amendments to the EU maximum hours for movement of animals.

Ben Bradshaw: The European Commission published proposals for new rules on animal welfare during transport on 16 July. On 17 July Defra launched a public consultation asking for the views of interested organisations. The consultation period ends on 8 October, after which copies of the responses will be made publicly available in accordance with Defra's policy of openness. Meetings will be held with interested organisations as part of the consultation process.

Bovine TB

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on levels of cases of bovine TB.

Ben Bradshaw: In the period January to July 2003, there were just over 2,100 1 new bovine tuberculosis (TB) incidents in Great Britain. This represents an increase of approximately 2 per cent. over the same period in 2002 when 2,065 new incidents were recorded. To date, just over 1,000 1 of the new incidents recorded in 2003 have been confirmed, 840 1 are unconfirmed and just under 260 1 remain unclassified pending the results of tissue culture tests.
	Defra is working hard to address the problem of bovine TB, and last year we spent £72 million on a programme of public health protection measures, cattle testing, cattle controls and extensive research. In February this year, we announced a review of the current TB control regime. We expect to consult on proposals for a long-term TB strategy for GB, and on short-term policy options, later this year.
	1 Provisional figures—subject to change as outstanding TB test and culture results become available.
	Notes:
	The TB testing and control programme was severely disrupted during the foot and mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in 2001. Since testing resumed in 2002, resources have been concentrated on herds with overdue tests which would have had a longer period in which to contract the disease. Also, the proportion of high risk herds being tested post-FMD is greater than that prior to the outbreak. As result, the number of TB breakdowns being recorded post-FMD is not comparable to that prior to the FMD outbreak.

Carbon Savings

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she estimates that the Government are on target to achieve carbon savings of 5 million tonnes by 2010.

Elliot Morley: The UK's target under the Kyoto Protocol is to reduce emissions of a basket of six greenhouse gases by 12.5 per cent. below base year levels by 2008–12. We estimate that this will equate to a reduction in emissions of around 26 MtC (million tonnes of carbon equivalent) by 2008–12. The UK's domestic target, to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by 20 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010, is estimated to equate to a reduction of about 33 MtC by 2010.
	Data for emissions of the basket of six greenhouse gases for 2001, submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in April 2003, show that emissions fell by 12.3 per cent., or 26 MtC, between the base year and 2001. Emissions of carbon dioxide fell by 5.3 per cent., or 9 MtC. Provisional data for 2002 show that total emissions fell by 14–15 per cent. between the base year and 2002, and carbon dioxide emissions fell by 8–9 per cent.
	Progress that we have made to date and our latest projections to 2010 contained in the UK's Third National Communication to the UNFCCC indicate that we are well on course to meet our Kyoto commitment. This conclusion is supported by a recent independent assessment by the UNFCCC.

Combined Heat and Power

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Department's strategy for combined heat and power will be finalised.

Elliot Morley: In keeping with the commitment made in the Energy White Paper published in February 2003, the Government will issue the final version of the Combined Heat and Power Strategy later this year. The Strategy will detail the measures we believe will help us achieve our challenging target of 10,000 MW of installed Good Quality CHP by 2010, incorporating the new support measures for CHP announced in the Energy White Paper.

Committee on Radioactive Waste Management

Jack Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what method she has adopted to determine membership of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management; how many appointments have been made; if she will list those people already confirmed as members of the committee; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 15 September 2003
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in a reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline, West (Rachel Squire), on 16 July 2003, Official Report, columns 318–19W, stated we had advertised in March for Members of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management, had received over 400 applications, and had appointed Katharine Bryan as Chair; Mrs. Bryan would help select the remaining members. We have since carried out interviews for the remaining posts and we shall make an announcement once the appointments have been agreed with the Devolved Administrations. Our method is to select candidates according to the criteria we published in March and following the Code of Practice of the Office for the Commissioner of Public Appointments, including the use of an independent assessor on the selection panel.

Conservation Sites

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions have taken place with the Countryside Agency about the assessment of European sites designated under the Conservation (Natural Habitats Act etc) Regulations 1994; and whether sites in the south-east and central southern regions will be assessed before the commencement of access arising from the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 in the summer of 2004;
	(2)  what information the Countryside Agency has received from English Nature to enable it to make appropriate assessments of European sites in the south-east and central southern regions of England under the Conservation (Natural Habitats Act etc) Regulations 1994; when the information was received; and when the assessments will be completed.

Alun Michael: The Countryside Agency has worked closely with English Nature to adopt an agreed approach in relation to nature conservation and access land. This is embodied in a heads of agreement signed between the agency and English Nature on 10 July 2000, in which both organisations agreed to work together to facilitate improved access and safeguard nature conservation interests.
	The agency and English Nature have agreed a detailed process to assess European sites designated under the Conservation (Natural Habitats Act etc.) Regulations 1994.
	English Nature has undertaken audits of all European sites designated under these regulations in the south-east and central southern mapping areas and has provided advice to the agency, in July 2001 and February 2003, on 99 sites which contain features that are potentially vulnerable to public access under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.
	The agency will complete the assessments for these sites before access commences in these two mapping areas.

Correspondence

Marion Roe: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letters from the hon. Member for Broxbourne of (a) 18 June, (b) 15 July, (c) 13 August and (d) 9 September relating to the contents of an article in the Sunday Telegraph dated 15 June, raised by one of her constituents.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 15 September 2003
	I replied to the hon. Member's letters of 18 June and 13 August on 9 September.
	Unfortunately, the Department has no record of receiving the hon. Member's letters of 15 July or 9 September. If the hon. Member will supply me with copies of her letters I shall ensure that they are dealt with speedily.

EU Legislation

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what further statutory responsibilities for collection and disposal will be placed upon local authorities as part of the implementation of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.

Elliot Morley: The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive does not place direct responsibilities on local authorities for the collection and disposal of WEEE, but on producers and distributors. The Government are preparing the UK implementation of the Directive and are discussing with local authorities how best to involve them in maximising use of the existing waste collection infrastructure. Options for implementation will be presented in the next round of consultation, due to be published in the late autumn.

Fishing Fleets

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to compensate for any virement of moneys under the Objective One fisheries programme transferring financial aid for decommissioning to other sectors of the programme following her earlier announcement denying access to the English Decommissioning Scheme for vessels outside of the North Sea; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Whether decommissioning grant for fishing vessels is available in Cornwall under the EU structural fund for fisheries (FIFO) is determined by the Cornish Objective One programme monitoring committee. I understand that on the advice of the programme's fisheries representatives the decision has been taken not to plan for expenditure on decommissioning for the remainder of the 2000–06 structural funds programme, in order to provide funding for strategic projects to which they give priority.
	The Government have made no decision to make other funds available for the decommissioning of vessels in the south-west fleet.

Flood Prevention

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made with regard to pre-feasibility studies to identify options for the alleviation of flooding in Medmenham and Marlow.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 11 September 2003
	As part of a more extensive study in Medmenham, consultants to the Environment Agency are currently modelling various different options for reducing flood risk. This has taken longer than anticipated due to problems with the modelling, however, the pre-feasibility report will be concluded by the end of October 2003.
	The Environment Agency is undertaking two pre-feasibility studies that are considering possible flood alleviation options for the Pound Lane and Firview Close areas of Marlow. The first study is due to be completed by the end of September and the second is due for completion in October 2003.

Flood Prevention

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has taken place of each area along the River Thames that has been designated as (a) flood plain and (b) at a high risk of flooding; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The Environment Agency's Indicative Floodplain Map provides a general overview of areas of land in natural floodplains and, therefore, that are potentially at risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. The maps are created using the best available information, and are based on historical flood records and computer models. The Agency's Thames Region is able to answer queries relating to the source of the floodplain outline in a particular area. Data are available for the River Thames and all other main river catchments.
	The Department's Flood Management High Level Target 5 requires operating authorities to make an overall assessment of the risk of flooding. The Environment Agency's Risk Assessment for Strategic Planning (RASP), combines information on the defence system, the Indicative Floodplain Map and the topography, to give an indication of the category of flood risk in a local area. The data are to be used by the Agency for national monitoring of risk from flooding; strategic prioritisation of investment in defence improvements or other flood management options (e.g. increased storage or diversion); targeting flood warning and emergency response; and highlighting priorities for monitoring and maintenance. The RASP outputs have been supplied to the Association of British Insurers and can be made available to individuals on request. The Agency is planning on being able to put this information on their website by September 2004.

Fluoridation

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research her Department has conducted into the effects of adding fluoride to water supplies; what recent meetings she has had with colleagues and others on the issue; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The Government's public health advisers are the Department of Health who are responsible for water fluoridation policy. The national health service Centre for Reviews and Dissemination at the University of York published its Report, "A Systematic Review of Water Fluoridation", in September 2000. In keeping with comments in the Report that there was a need for more good quality research, the Department of Health commissioned the Medical Research Centre (MRC) to advise on how the evidence base might be strengthened. Its Report was published in September 2002. The Chief Medical Officer and the Chief Dental Officer were asked to examine these recent recommendations and to report on the implications for Government policy. Their Report is expected during the autumn. DoH have also commissioned a research study on the bio-availability (absorption) of fluoride.
	There has been regular inter-departmental liaison between Defra and Department of Health Ministers and officials about amendments that have been included in the Water Bill to the water fluoridation provisions in the Water Industry Act 1991. The amendments were considered by Committee of the whole House of Lords on 9 July and we anticipate that water fluoridation will be considered in Committee in the House of Commons on 21 October. On the Government side there will be a free vote.

Gangmasters (Code of Practice)

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she plans to publish a code of practice for gangmasters; what subjects it will cover; what legal status it will have; and which bodies will be consulted on it prior to publication.

Ben Bradshaw: Work is currently going on to draw up a code of practice for gangmasters operating in the agriculture and fresh produce sectors, covering best practice in employing people and supplying labour to other businesses. The intention is that it should cover a range of issues relevant to employment and labour supply, such as health and safety, minimum wages, working hours, entitlement to work and VAT registration. Plans are being prepared to trial the draft code of practice on a voluntary basis with a number of gangmasters and businesses using gang labour during the autumn. Decisions on publication of the code and on its legal status will be taken in the light of this trial. A range of bodies and individual businesses, representing farmers, farm workers, packhouses, retailers and gangmasters, and the Ethical Trading Initiative are working in partnership with Government to develop and pilot the Code of Practice. Further bodies will be consulted once a draft version of the Code is available.

GM Birdseed

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what evidence she has that GM birdseed has been released into the UK environment and on what scale; what procedures are in place or planned to separate out GM lines in (a) canary seed, (b) linseed, (c) millet and (d) rape seed mixes that are imported; and what action she is taking to prosecute those who illegally contaminate the UK environment.

Elliot Morley: I have no evidence that any GM seeds are being sold as bird-seed in the UK.
	The seeds of canary-grass, linseed, millet and oilseed rape are frequently sold as food for wild birds. However at the present time no GM varieties of these plants are permitted for this use. It is the responsibility of the supplier to comply with regulations on marketing of genetically modified organisms. One type of GM rape seed has authorisation for import into the European Union as grain, however it must be crushed and processed so cannot be used as whole grain in bird seed mixes.
	We understand that oilseed rape used in UK bird seed mixes is typically sourced in the UK where no GM varieties are permitted for commercial cultivation.
	If we were to become aware through existing inspection procedures that an importer was in breach of the law, we would consider prosecution.

GM Foods

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on her discussions with the chief executive officers of ASDA, Tesco, Sainsbury and Safeway on 16 July regarding GM foods; and what plans she has to meet the chief executive officers of Marks and Spencer and Waitrose on this issue.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 11 September 2003
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State met with the CEOs of ASDA, Tesco, Sainsbury and Safeway, the four largest supermarket chains, in a listening capacity, in particular to hear their views as part of the public dialogue on GM issues. During the course of discussion, she emphasised the Government's support for proportional and workable measures for the mandatory traceability and labelling of GM foods and crops.
	The interests of other retailers, including those of Marks and Spencer and Waitrose, were represented at the meeting by the Director General of the British Retail Consortium.

GM Foods

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions her Department has had with the European Commission to ensure that GM foods are labelled and traceable.

Elliot Morley: The Department, working closely with the Food Standards Agency, has had regular discussions with the Commission and other EU partners on this issue, both at official and ministerial level. Most recently these discussions have taken place in the context of negotiating the new EC Regulation on the traceability and labelling of GM products that was agreed in July 2003,

LANTRA

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list those industries which constitute the representative role of LANTRA; and what plans there are to include additional industries.

Alun Michael: Lantra represents the following 17 industries:
	agricultural crops;
	agricultural livestock;
	animal care;
	animal technology;
	acquaculture;
	environmental conservation;
	equine;
	farriery;
	fencing;
	fisheries management;
	floristry;
	game conservation;
	land-based engineering;
	landscaping;
	production horticulture;
	trees and timber; and
	veterinary nursing.
	Any proposals to extend coverage would be for discussion between Lantra and the Sector Skills Development Agency. Lantra has assured Ministers that it fully appreciates the importance to link to the work of other similar agencies to make sure that the needs of the diverse rural economy and communities are met. Discussions are currently taking place between Lantra, the Sector Skills Development Agency and this Department about a role for Lantra in coordinating the work of Sector Skills Councils with significant interests in rural areas.

Livestock Disposal

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effects of the on-farm burial ban; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: No formal assessment has been made, although clearly the ban will have an impact on those farmers who had previously buried fallen stock on farm. That is why the Government have announced they are setting up a low cost voluntary national fallen stock scheme in conjunction with the livestock industry to assist farmers in adapting to the new requirements for disposal of fallen stock.
	In the interim, the Fallen Stock helpline on 0845 8507070 can give advice to farmers on collection services in their area to enable them to dispose of their fallen stock now.

Royal Mail Deliveries

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate the Government have made of the change in CO2 emissions arising from Royal Mail's decision to move mail from rail to road.

Elliot Morley: The Government have made no estimate of the impact on CO2 emissions of Royal Mail's decision, which is a commercial and economic one for the Royal Mail to make. The Government encourage all businesses to adopt strategies that reduce emissions overall.

Rural Development Fund

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to propose detailed provisions on rural development fund payments and their application to tenant farmers. [R]

Alun Michael: The England Rural Development Programme was established in 2000 and measures under it are available to all farmers, including tenant farmers, on the same terms. Because the Government were keen to ensure that tenants are not disadvantaged in applying for farm diversification or agri-environment schemes, we asked the Tenancy Reform Industry Group to consider this issue. This group, which included representatives from all key industry stakeholder organisations, published its report in June 2003. TRIG has proposed a comprehensive package of legislative, fiscal and other changes that are intended to ensure both landlord and tenant have more flexibility to deal with the long-term nature of rural land management. These recommendations have the support of all TRIG members.
	TRIG did not find sufficient evidence to warrant recommending a change to agricultural tenancy legislation to give tenants a greater ability to diversify or participate in agri-environment schemes. However, they have proposed that a new Code of Good Practice should be drawn up to help avoid disputes between landlords and tenants on consent for diversification into non-agricultural activities. The Group also recommended that if, after a period of years the Code of Good Practice was not seen to be working and there is evidence to show that the legislation is acting as a barrier to diversification, legislative change should be considered.
	The Government's formal response to the Group's report has not yet been published. However we have asked TRIG to take work on a Code of Good Practice forward and a small working group will be working on this over the autumn.

Softwood

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what controls there are on the import of softwoods into the United Kingdom to ensure that they originate from sustainable forests.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 15 September 2003
	The UK Government support sustainable forest management and are committed to tackling illegal logging and its associated trade.
	Under EU law, import controls on illegally logged timber, can only be imposed at EU level. We are therefore working actively within the EU, where this is now being considered. The Government have shown leadership in their strong encouragement of the European Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) process. The European Commission published a proposed FLEGT action plan on 21 May 2003. The plan includes a proposal to draft a new EU regulation to address imports of illegally logged timber in a way that is consistent with EU obligations to the World Trade Organisation.
	The FLEGT action plan deals only with legality. The EU's wider objective is to encourage sustainable forest management. Since in many countries forest legislation is based on the premise of sustainable forest management, better law enforcement will in general lead to more sustainable forest management. Where this is not the case, the Commission propose that the EU should encourage a review of the legal framework.
	The UK Government are working with other member states to ensure favourable Council conclusions inviting the Commission to proceed with this work as soon as possible.

Softwood

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what records the Government have of United Kingdom softwood timber prices in (a) 1999, (b) 2000, (c) 2001 and (d) 2002.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 15 September 2003
	Average prices for softwood standing sales in Great Britain are presented in the table.
	
		
			 Financial year Average price per cubic metre (£) 
		
		
			 1999–2000 8.72 
			 2000–01 8.15 
			 2001–02 7.52 
			 2002–03 5.74 
		
	
	Note:
	The figures are taken from sales of standing timber on Forestry Commission land.

Waste Disposal

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the choice of waste disposal method by (a) waste disposal authorities and (b) businesses in the event of the introduction of an incinerator tax on the same basis as the landfill tax.

Elliot Morley: No assessment has been made. In this year's Budget, the Chancellor stated that a review of the environmental and health effects of all waste management and disposal options had been commissioned. The review has yet to be completed but we aim to report on its findings later in the year. The case for using economic instruments for incineration will be considered in light of this work, and in consultation with other stakeholders.

Water Pollution

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the problems caused by delays in enforcement action being taken against (a) companies and (b) households discharging pollutants into waterways.

Elliot Morley: The Environment Agency (the Agency) has powers to ensure that preventative or remedial action is taken to protect the environment or to secure compliance with relevant legislation such as the Water Resources Act 1991 (as amended by the Environment Act 1995), which makes provision regarding discharges to controlled waters. The enforcement action taken by the Agency will be proportionate to the risks posed to the environment and to the seriousness of any breach of the law. The Agency's powers for prosecution are used when it is satisfied that there is sufficient, admissible and reliable evidence that the offence has been committed and that there is a realistic prospect of conviction.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Criminal Justice and Trial Units

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General what percentage of (a) magistrates' court cases and (b) Crown Court cases were dealt with by joint police and Crown Prosecution Service criminal justice units and trials units in 2002–03.

Harriet Harman: By the end of 2002–03, 43.4 per cent. of the Crown Prosecution Service's magistrates' court caseload and 27.6 per cent. of its Crown Court caseload were dealt with in collocated Criminal Justice Units and Trial Units.

Crown Prosecution Service

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General in what ways the CPS is contributing to the CJS Case Preparation Project to reform case management in (a) magistrates' courts and (b) the Crown Court.

Harriet Harman: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is actively supporting this Project, and has been closely involved in its development. At a local level, CPS practitioners are playing a key role in local implementation teams at each of the five pilot sites, and on the Local Criminal Justice Boards responsible for overseeing the delivery of the pilots. At a national level, the CPS has two senior representatives on the project board, and others on the national stakeholder machinery. The CPS has also seconded a senior prosecutor to the project team who is leading the 'production' strand of the project.

Crown Prosecution Service

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General what targets were set by the CPS in 2002–03 on (a) the presentation in court of prosecution cases, (b) the testing of defence cases and (c) complying with the duties of disclosure; and what the performance results are of these targets.

Harriet Harman: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) set a target in 2002–03 for Higher Court Advocates (HCAs) to undertake a minimum amount of advocacy in the Crown Court. The total national requirement was for HCAs to undertake 8,620 sessions; the outturn was 7,217 sessions or 83.7 per cent. No other targets were set in relation to the presentation of prosecution cases in court.
	The CPS did not set any target in relation to testing the defence case.
	The CPS does not set a target for compliance with disclosure requirements, but performance is monitored by Her Majesty's CPS Inspectorate (HMCPSI) as part of their regular cycle of inspections. The latest published annual data from HMCPSI, for 2001–02, shows that the percentage of cases where primary disclosure was handled properly was 80.4 per cent. and for secondary disclosure it was 75.3 per cent. From 1 April 2003, the CPS has been undertaking formal monitoring of performance on disclosure as part its internal Casework Quality Assurance programme.

Director of Public Prosecutions

Norman Baker: To ask the Solicitor-General 
	(1)  if she will list the (a) Ministers, (b) civil servants and (c) members of the judiciary consulted as part of the selection process which resulted in the appointment of Mr. Ken Macdonald QC as Director of Public Prosecutions.
	(2)  if she will make a statement on the appointment of Mr. Ken Macdonald QC as Director of Public Prosecutions;
	(3)  if he will list the members of the panels which (a) interviewed and (b) selected Mr. Ken Macdonald QC for the position of Director of Public Prosecutions.

Harriet Harman: The appointment of Mr. Ken Macdonald QC as Director of Public Prosecutions was made following a process of fair and open competition.
	Advertisements were placed in the national media and legal journals and, as part of the search process, a number of civil servants and members of the judiciary were approached in order to identify suitable candidates.
	The selection panel was chaired by the independent First Civil Service Commissioner Baroness Prashar. The other members of the selection panel were Sir Hayden Phillips, Permanent Secretary at the Department for Constitutional Affairs, Sir David Omand, Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office; and Sir Robin Auld, Lord Justice of Appeal. Ken Macdonald QC was recommended for appointment by the panel to the Attorney-General. No other Ministers, civil servants or members of the judiciary, apart from a referee nominated on a confidential basis by Mr. Macdonald, were consulted as part of this process.
	In line with normal practice, the Attorney-General informed the Prime Minister's office that he intended to appoint Ken Macdonald.

Sports Events

Nick Harvey: To ask the Solicitor-General how many (a) prosecutions and (b) resulting convictions there have been arising from circumstances at British sports events in each of the last 10 years, broken down by type of (i) sport and (ii) offence.

Harriet Harman: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not keep data on prosecutions or convictions arising out of incidents at British sports events. Any data that might be kept by operational units at the CPS could be obtained only by examination of live and concluded case files at disproportionate cost.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Advertising (Children)

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what figures her Department has collated on the (a) proportion of advertising during children's television scheduling that involves marketing of food products and (b) proportion of food advertising during children's television scheduling that involves promotion of food of low nutritional value.

Estelle Morris: The Department has not undertaken research on food advertising during children's television scheduling. However, figures relating to this issue have been provided to the Department by my hon. Friend the Member for Stourbridge and others.

Advertising (Children)

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions her Department has had in the last 12 months with the Department of Health on the issue of food and drink advertising to children.

Estelle Morris: The Department has had limited discussions with the Department of Health regarding this issue over the last 12 months, in the context of broadcast advertising, but will be represented at the forthcoming meeting of the Department of Health's Food and Health Action Plan Steering Group. The Department is fully supportive of Government initiatives to tackle the problem of child obesity and is working closely with the Department of Health and the Department for Education and Skills on these as well as developing its own health initiatives relating to increased physical activity, particularly in children.

Advertising (Children)

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received in the last 12 months on the issue of food and drink advertising to children from (a) the advertising industry, (b) the food and drink industry and (c) organisations concerned with providing public health.

Estelle Morris: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not received any formal representations from the advertising industry on the issue of food and drink advertising to children, but is aware of the industry's views. The Department has also had informal discussions with the food and drink industry regarding the European Commission's consideration of proposals on broadcast advertising. In May 2003, the Secretary of State met my hon. Friend the Member for Stourbridge and representatives of several public health promotion organisations to discuss this matter.

Films (North-east England)

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to promote film tourism in the North East of England.

Richard Caborn: VisitBritain is funded by the Department to market Britain overseas and England to the domestic market. VisitBritain's movie map campaign and website have run continuously since 1996. Three sites in the North East where scenes from Elizabeth were filmed are featured: Alnwick Castle and Bamburgh Beach in Northumberland and Durham Cathedral. The map also features Newcastle where the films Purely Belter and The One and Only were set, Hulne Priory in Northumberland which appears in Robin Hood—Prince of Thieves, and Easington where Billy Elliott was filmed. Alnwick Castle, and the wealth of other attractions in its vicinity, is also featured in VisitBritain's 'The Magic of Britain' campaign which promotes Britain through the Harry Potter series of films. Future plans include building on the new Russell Crowe film Master and Commander in VisitBritain's 'SeaBritain 2005' campaign which, among other nautical and maritime locations, will feature HMS Trincomalee in Hartlepool.

Parliamentary Questions

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many Questions directed to her remain unanswered.

Richard Caborn: 24 written parliamentary questions tabled to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for answer up to and including Monday 15 September 2003 remain unanswered. This includes 21 ordinary written questions tabled to the Department between 9–12 September.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Burma

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the relationship between his Department and the Burmese Government; and what recent discussions they have had about (a) the arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi and (b) human rights abuses against minority groups.

Mike O'Brien: The UK has made numerous representations to the Burmese authorities concerning the arrest of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. I personally have spoken to the Burmese Deputy Foreign Minister and most recently the Burmese ambassador on 1 September, to register the UK's grave concern over the unacceptable violence and repression that has been inspired, organised and carried out by the military regime. This has been supplemented by representations by the British embassy in Rangoon who have been instrumental in pressing for and supporting demarches to the Burmese regime, including on human rights abuses against the ethnic groups.

International Student Visas

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many international student visas are issued each year.

Chris Mullin: The table shows the number of student visas issued worldwide each year since 1998. Since 2001, statistics have been collated by financial year (1 April to 31 March) rather than calendar year.
	
		
			  Student visas issued 
		
		
			 1998 69,607 
			 1999 75,607 
			 2000 99,559 
			 FY 2001–02 121,466 
			 FY 2002–03 120,888

Afghanistan

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many ministerial visits have been made to Afghanistan in the last six months.

Mike O'Brien: There have been two ministerial visits to Afghanistan in the last six months. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary visited between 30 June and 1 July, followed by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Rammell) between 22 and 27 July.

Algeria

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the European Parliament concerning human rights violations in Algeria under the European Union Algeria Association Agreement; and what plans he has to introduce measures to increase the level of aid to that country.

Denis MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has not discussed with the European Parliament human rights violations in Algeria under the EU/Algeria Association Agreement. The Agreement was signed on 22 April 2002, but is not yet in force. Member states, the European Community and Algeria must all ratify the Agreement before it can come into force. When the Agreement does enter into force the EU will be in a position to monitor closely Algeria's adherence to the human rights principles laid out in the Association Agreement.
	The European Parliament debated the conclusion of the EU/Algerian Association Agreement on 10 October 2002. The Parliament welcomed the plan to conclude the Agreement and hoped that the Agreement would give decisive impetus to the political and economic reforms required to improve the economic and social situation in Algeria. The European Parliament also highlighted its concerns over Algeria's human rights record.
	The UK's bilateral development programme is focused on the poorest countries, particularly those of sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. The Government have no plans to reintroduce a bilateral development programme in Algeria, which is a middle income country. Nor do we intend to press the EC to expand its development programme in the country.

Algeria

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the ratification of the EU-Algeria Association Agreement.

Denis MacShane: The Government have initiated the process for UK ratification of the EU/Algeria Association Agreement, the text of which is contained in Command Paper 5804, laid before Parliament on 9 May 2003. I anticipate that the agreement will be debated in Parliament in this session, and that the UK's ratification procedures will be completed by February 2004. The agreement will enter into force when all parties— EU member states, the European Community and Algeria—have ratified.

China

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the treatment of Pastor Gong Shengliang, held in Jingzhou prison, Hubei Province, China.

Bill Rammell: We have been concerned about reports that Pastor Gong Shengliang has suffered ill treatment in Jingzhou prison, Hubei Province. We supported an EU demarche on this subject in Beijing on 18 July. The Chinese authorities said that the allegations of torture and ill-treatment were untrue and that Pastor Gong was in good health.
	We have also raised Pastor Gong's case directly with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On 31 July the Chinese authorities told us that Pastor Gong had had stomach problems before he was imprisoned and that following treatment the problems had stabilised. His relatives have visited him four times.

Cyprus

Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made about the provision of education for Greek children recently in the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus.

Denis MacShane: The British Government take the welfare of the Greek Cypriot community in the north of Cyprus seriously. Through our High Commission in Cyprus, and with the Turkish Cypriot authorities, the UN and the Government of Cyprus, we do what we can to ameliorate the situation.
	Our High Commission is keeping a close eye on the situation concerning those students who have recently finished their primary education and are due to move to secondary education.
	Nevertheless, this remains one of the many examples of the fact that Cypriots on both sides of the island suffer because of the lack so far of a comprehensive settlement in Cyprus. We are urging the parties to resume negotiations on the basis of the UN Plan, in time to allow a reunited island to accede to the EU on 1 May next year.

European Union

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many amendments were tabled by the right hon. Member for Neath (Mr. Hain) at the Convention on the Future of Europe; and how many were agreed to.

Denis MacShane: We estimate that, excluding the reiterations of amendments tabled more than once, the UK delegation submitted 154 amendments. Many of these were technical or legal drafting amendments. Even when not accepting amendments verbatim, the Convention frequently agreed on language which met our underlying concerns in whole or in part.
	For that reason, it is not possible to put a precise figure on the number of UK proposals that were agreed to. The Convention's final draft text met the majority of the UK's objectives. As the Thessaloniki Council agreed it is 'a good starting point' for the discussions between 25 European nation states which will agree the next EU constitutional treaty.

Framework Convention on Tobacco Control

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action his Department is taking, in conjunction with the Department of Health, to encourage the ratification of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control by all EU member states.

Denis MacShane: The UK signed the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in June and is currently preparing to ratify the Treaty. We will be aiming to encourage early ratification by other Member States too. The ratification timetable is likely to be discussed at the Council on 1–2 December.

Iraq

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what timetable is planned for elections in Iraq.

Bill Rammell: We believe that it should be for the Iraqi people to determine the timetable for their elections, with appropriate international help as required. A Constitutional Preparatory Committee is due to report by mid-September with recommendations on drafting a constitution, a process which we hope will reach fruition by mid-2004, with the aim that national elections would be held shortly thereafter.

Iraq

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made since July regarding the involvement of other international bodies in Iraq.

Bill Rammell: The Government remain committed to a vital role for the UN in Iraq, as provided for by Security Council Resolution 1483. The Security Council is currently considering a draft resolution which would encourage further participation by the UN and the international community in assisting Iraq, including in the political processes leading to the formation of a representative government. The Secretary-General's report of 17 July (of which a copy has been placed in the Library of the House) identified further areas in which the UN could contribute to the initial effort in Iraq. The Government would support an increased UN contribution in these areas. Following the terrorist attack on the United Nations Headquarters in Baghdad on 19 August, the UN's efforts in Iraq have inevitably been scaled back. We are in discussion with the UN on the security measures needed to ensure that the UN is able to resume and expand its role in Iraq.
	Since July, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have been active in Iraq producing first needs assessments for the reconstruction of Iraq. This in-country work was cut short by the outrage against the UN headquarters on 19 August, but finalisation of the assessments continues.
	It is vital for Iraq that international NGOs continue their work on the ground. It is hoped that, as the security situation in Iraq improves, these organisations will continue with their humanitarian efforts. The Madrid Donors' Conference next month should give a significant boost to Iraq's reconstruction process.

ISAF

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with representatives of allied countries on extending the mandate of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: The UK has regular discussions with international partners at all levels on all matters relating to Afghanistan, including the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). NATO took over leadership of ISAF in August 2003 and is currently engaged in a review of ISAF's role. It would be inappropriate for us to second-guess the outcome of this review and any possible effect it might have on the ISAF mandate. But any change to ISAF's role would also require amendment of its mandate through the UN.

Microsoft (Licensing Fees)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much was paid to Microsoft in licensing fees by his Department and its agencies in each of the last three years; and how much has been budgeted for (a) 2003–04 and (b) 2004–05.

Bill Rammell: The amounts paid by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for Microsoft software licences over the past three years were: £0.12 million in 2000–01; £0.61 million in 2001–02; and £0.45 million in 2002–03. Projected spend for 2003–04 is £0.15 million. There is no specific budget for Microsoft software licences in 2004–05, although the overall software budget is £2.3 million.

Nepal

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Nepal.

Mike O'Brien: The collapse of the ceasefire and peace talks between the Government of Nepal and the Maoists is a very disappointing development. It heightens the risk of renewed violence and suffering in Nepal which will benefit no-one.
	It remains the firm belief of the UK Government that no military solution to the conflict is possible, and we welcome the Nepalese Government's expressed willingness to continue to pursue a peaceful solution. We strongly urge all parties to return to the negotiation table, and work together to find a lasting solution.
	The UK Government stand ready to provide support for a renewed peace process. UK assistance to Nepal has included a £6 million Global Conflict Prevention Pool package this year to help tackle the root causes of the conflict. The Department for International Development is providing £22 million of development assistance this financial year.

Terrorism

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what studies have been received by the United Nations Security Council Counter Terrorism Committee from (a) academic sources, (b) think-tanks and (c) experts on terrorism; and what the policy is on the availability to the general public of submissions by the United Kingdom to the UNSCCTC.

Bill Rammell: We are not aware that any reports from academic sources, think-tanks or experts on terrorism have been formally submitted to the UN's Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC). However, the CTC has an established body of experts advising it. In the course of their work, the Experts draw on all available sources of information to provide the most up-to-date and effective guidance to the Committee. The CTC makes available to the public all reports from member states by posting them on its official website www.un.org/sc/ctc. This includes the three reports that the United Kingdom has submitted to the CTC to date.

Uganda

Patsy Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps are taken at the British High Commission in Uganda to ensure fair access to the High Commission for those wishing to obtain visas for entry to the UK.

Chris Mullin: Since October 2002, the Visa Section in Kampala has operated a same day service despite an unprecedented level of demand for visas. UK visas have allocated two extra Entry Clearance Officers to deal with this demand.
	I am aware of problems with the current queuing system. Applications are considered on a first come first served basis but applicants with medical conditions can make pre-arranged appointments to visit the Visa Section. The elderly, children and the infirm are also given priority.
	To improve the situation, from December all applications will be submitted on paper via an outsourced courier service. Applicants will therefore not be required to visit the Visa Section to submit their applications in person.

UN Arms Embargoes

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response his Department made to the UN Panel of Experts Fowler Report on its recommendations for secondary sanctions against states that have been complicit in breaching UN arms embargoes.

Bill Rammell: The UK supported the recommendation by the Fowler Report to place secondary sanctions against countries complicit in breaching the UN arms embargo against Angola (UNITA) (UNSCR 864(1993). But the UK recognised that there were a number of practical difficulties to overcome, not least gaining consensus amongst Security Council members that there would be sufficient proof to declare a State guilty of deliberate sanctions busting. Initially the issue was kept alive by UNSCR 1295(2000), passed subsequent to the Fowler Report on 18 April 2000. Paragraph 5 of the resolution expressed
	"its readiness . . . to consider appropriate action in accordance with the Charter in relation to States it determines to have violated the measures contained in those [ie sanctions] resolutions, and establishes 18 November 2000 as the deadline for an initial decision in this regard". But when the Security Council considered the Monitoring Mechanism's (delayed) report in February 2001, Canada called for the Security Council to focus on imposing secondary sanctions, and did so again in November 2001; each time without success due to a lack of consensus.

United Nations Security Council

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has during the United Kingdom presidency of the United Nations Security Council to increase the transparency of the Council's activities; and whether he plans to increase public knowledge of the content and implications of UNSC resolutions.

Bill Rammell: I presented the Government's programme of work for the UK Presidency of the UN Security Council (UNSC) during the debate on the UN held in Westminster Hall on 11 September. The Programme of Work can be viewed on the website of the UK Mission to the UN in New York www.ukun.org. Wherever possible, UNSC activities are transparent, and the UK's Presidency includes a number of open meetings. For example, there have been Open Briefings on the Middle East and on Liberia, and there will be an Open Meeting on Sierra Leone and an Open Debate on Justice and the Rule of Law.
	Press statements, Presidential statements and all UNSC Resolutions are available to the public, most readily on the UN's official website www.un.org. I also refer my hon. Friend to the United Kingdom in the United Nations Command Paper (Cm 5898).

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Access to Learning Fund

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the (a) use, (b) development and (c) cost of the Access to Learning Fund.

Ivan Lewis: The Access to Learning Fund (ALF) is a new non-repayable discretionary Fund administered by institutions with HE students and aimed at providing additional support for those who need extra financial help to access or remain in Higher Education. Priority groups for assistance include: students with children (especially lone-parents); mature students; students from low income families; disabled students; care leavers and students from Foyers or who are homeless.
	The ALF is being introduced following consultation with institutions' and students' representatives to ensure that awards are made on a consistent and transparent basis. The ALF is currently being piloted in approximately 50 institutions and subject to evaluation it is intended to be rolled out in all institutions from 2004–05.
	In 2004–05 £65.5 million will be available through the Access to Learning Fund.

Adult Qualifications

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people aged (a) 19–30 and (b) over 30 in the working population have not achieved (i) a Level 2 qualification and (ii) a Level 3 qualification.

Alan Johnson: The following table shows analysis of the working population (i.e. economically active) for those aged (a) 19–30 and (b) over 30 who lack a Level 2 and Level 3 qualification. Data come from the Labour Force Survey in spring 2003 and cover England only.
	
		
			  Age band  Age band  
			  19 to 30 Percentage Over 30(4) Percentage 
		
		
			 Below Level 2 1,294,000 22 5,646,000 32 
			 Below Level 3 2,629,000 44 9,234,000 53 
			 Total work force 5,921,000 — 17,568,000 — 
		
	
	(4) This age band covers economically active males aged 31–64 and economically active females aged 31–59.

Apprenticeships

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the (a) current participation and (b) latest annual completion rates are for (i) foundation and (ii) advanced modern apprenticeships, broken down by proposed sector skills council areas.

Ivan Lewis: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) publish work based learning participation numbers and success rates by area of learning rather than by sector. The 14 areas of learning are used by the LSC, the Adult Learning Inspectorate and Ofsted. Numbers participating on advanced modern apprenticeships (AMA) and foundation modern apprenticeships (FMA) as at 1 November 2002 by area of learning are shown in the following table.
	
		Learners on 1 November 2002 by area of learning -- 000s
		
			 Area of Learning AMA FMA 
		
		
			 Business administration, Management and Professional 12.1 17.9 
			 Construction 11.3 18.1 
			 Engineering, Technology and Manufacturing 46.9 13 
			 English, Languages and Communication — — 
			 Foundation programmes — — 
			 Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy 5.2 13.9 
			 Health, Social Care and Public Services 11.1 12.5 
			 Hospitality, Sports, Leisure and Travel 8.9 15 
			 Humanities — — 
			 Information and Communication Technology 4.1 4.1 
			 Land based provision 1.6 3.2 
			 Retailing, Customer Service and Transportation 10.2 22.1 
			 Science and Mathematics 0.2 0.1 
			 Visual and Performing Arts and Media 0.7 0.2 
			 Unspecified area of learning 0.9 0.8 
			 Total 113.3 120.8 
		
	
	Source
	Individualised Learner Record 2002/03
	Success rates by area of learning for those who left a modern apprenticeship in 2001/02 were published on 24 July, 2003 by the LSC in the Statistical First Release ISR/SFR25. These are shown in the following table.
	
		Success rates by area of learning and programme type 2001/02
		
			  Framework (X per cent.) NVQ Only (Y per cent.) Framework or NVQ(X plus y per cent.) Total leavers numbers 
		
		
			 Advanced Modern Apprenticeships
			 Business Administration Management and Professional 25 12 37 10,400 
			 Construction 33 14 46 8,700 
			 Engineering, Technology and Manufacturing 38 9 47 13,000 
			 English, Languages and Communications — — — — 
			 Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy 22 8 30 3,900 
			 Health, Social Care and Public Services 22 13 35 7,400 
			 Hospitality, Sports Leisure and Travel 19 6 26 8,400 
			 Humanities — — — — 
			 Information and Communication technology 31 9 40 1,800 
			 Land-based provision 24 10 34 900 
			 Other Foundation Programmes — — — — 
			 Retailing, Customer Service and Transportation 16 9 24 10,400 
			 Science and Maths 36 2 39 100 
			 Visual & Performing Arts & Media 31 17 48 400 
			 Unspecified AOL 11 11 22 100 
			 Total 26 10 36 65,400 
			  
			 Foundation Modern Apprenticeships
			 Business Administration Management and Professional 26 11 38 15,100 
			 Construction 24 12 36 7,100 
			 Engineering, Technology and Manufacturing 19 13 32 6,900 
			 English, Languages and Communications — — — — 
			 Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy 26 11 36 7,500 
			 Health, Social Care and Public Services 15 13 28 9,000 
			 Hospitality, Sports Leisure and Travel 19 12 31 13,900 
			 Humanities — — — — 
			 Information and Communication technology 46 8 54 4,200 
			 Land-based provision 26 15 41 2,500 
			 Other Foundation Programmes — — — — 
			 Retailing, Customer Service and Transportation 19 11 30 25,000 
			 Science and Maths — — — — 
			 Visual & Performing Arts & Media 22 15 37 100 
			 Unspecified AOL 0 2 2 500 
			 Total 22 11 34 91,800 
		
	
	Source
	Individualised Learner Record 2001/02

Data Protection

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills under what powers a county council may keep a person's P45 details on file after they have been used as part of a student loan application; and for what length of time such details may be kept.

Alan Johnson: The basis for the county council processing the P45 derives from s. 22(2)(a) of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998, and the relevant provision of the applicable Student Support Regulations (e.g. reg 6(3) of the Education (Student Support) (No. 2) Regulations 2002 which states:
	"An applicant shall demonstrate his eligibility for support by providing such evidence as the Secretary of State may require.")
	The basis for keeping a person's P45 details on file is firstly that this is a National Audit Office requirement and as such the NAO is entitled to audit the assessment and payment of loans and can request supporting documentation relating to main ledger financial transactions for a period of up to six years after after the end of the financial year in which the transaction took place. Secondly, the Limitation Act 1980, which applies to proceedings by and against the Crown, and has the effect that proceedings to recover money must be instituted within six years of the money becoming due. Evidence used for the assessment is therefore required to be retained to support or defend any such action.
	1. The four main acts of parliament from which the Comptroller and Auditor General and the NAO derive their authority are:
	(a) The Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000
	(b) National Audit Act 1983
	(c) Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1921
	(d) Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1866

Education Funding (Buckinghamshire)

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the impact of the area cost adjustment on education funding in (a) Chesham and Amersham and (b) Buckinghamshire.

David Miliband: The Area Cost Adjustment provides funding top-ups for areas where it costs more to recruit and retain staff. It uses the New Earnings Survey to calculate earnings differentials between different areas in the country. A threshold is set below which all authorities are given the same area cost adjustment factor. The area cost adjustment factor for Buckinghamshire is 1.0943. It is for Buckinghamshire local education authority to decide on the distribution of funding within Buckinghamshire, in consultation with its schools.

Individual Learning Accounts

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much money has been set aside for Individual Learning Accounts for (a) 2003–04, (b) 2004–05 and (c) 2005–06.

Ivan Lewis: In order to meet remaining commitments under the original ILA Programme, a budget of £8.013 million has been set aside for 2003–04. The remaining funding originally set aside for Individual Learning Accounts has been re-deployed to support the implementation of proposals set out in the White Paper '21 Century Skills: Realising our Potential' published on 9 July 2003.

Key Stage 2 (Buckinghamshire)

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of 11-year-olds in (a) the Chesham and Amersham constituency and (b) Buckinghamshire have achieved Key Stage 2 in each year since 1997 in (i) maths and (ii) English.

David Miliband: The percentage of pupils achieving Level 4 or above at Key Stage 2 in (a) the Chesham and Amersham constituency and (b) Buckinghamshire local education authority (LEA) from 1997 to 2003:
	
		
			  Chesham and Amersham constituency Buckinghamshire LEA England 
		
		
			 English
			 2003(5) 85 80 75 
			 2002 86 79 75 
			 2001 86 82 75 
			 2000 85 81 75 
			 1999 83 77 71 
			 1998 78 73 65 
			 1997 80 73 63 
			 Mathematics
			 2003(5) 81 77 73 
			 2002 82 76 73 
			 2001 81 76 71 
			 2000 82 76 72 
			 1999 81 73 69 
			 1998 72 64 59 
			 1997 75 69 62 
		
	
	(5) Provisional

Older Workers

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the level of career advice available to workers over 50; what plans he has to improve the profile of the service; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: During 2002 my officials instigated a project to gauge the career advice needs of the over 45 age group. The findings from this project are being used to improve services and to inform policy for the reform of the information, advice and guidance (IAG) service for adults. A copy of the report has been lodged in the Library. Part of the reform will be to improve the accessibility and visibility of services through development of an overarching identity for IAG services for adults.

Pupil Exclusions

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what powers he has to overturn the decision to (a) exclude a pupil and (b) reinstate an excluded pupil; and what effect legislation enacted since 1997 has had on the powers of his office in this respect.

Ivan Lewis: The Secretary of State has no powers to overturn the decision to exclude a pupil or to reinstate an excluded pupil. No legislation enacted since 1997 has had any effect on his powers in these respects.

School Exclusions and Suspensions(North Tyneside)

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many school (a) exclusions and (b) suspensions there were in North Tyneside in 2001–02.

Ivan Lewis: In 2001–02 there were 56 permanent exclusions from maintained primary, secondary and all special schools in North Tyneside. The table shows how the number and percentage of excluded pupils in North Tyneside compares with regional and national figures.
	
		Number of permanent exclusions by type of school 2001–2002 (provisional)
		
			  Primary(6) Secondary(6) Special(7) Total 
			  Number of permanent exclusions Percentageof the school population(8) Number of permanent exclusions Percentageof the school population(8) Number of permanent exclusions Percentageof the school population(8) Number of permanent exclusions Percentageof the school population(8) 
		
		
			 England 1,451 0.03 7,741 0.24 343 0.36 9,535 0.12 
			 North East 62 0.03 409 0.23 16 0.27 487 0.12 
			 North Tyneside 5 0.03 49 0.35 2 0.30 56 0.18 
		
	
	(6) Includes middle schools as deemed.
	(7) Includes Maintained and Non-Maintained Special Schools.
	(8) The number of permanent exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) pupils in Primary, Secondary and Special schools, excluding dualy registered pupils in special schools in January 2002.
	The Department has recently started to collect information from Local Education Authorities on both fixed term and permanent exclusions on a termly basis. However, reliable findings from this data collection exercise are not expected to be available until next year.

Skills Acquisition and Accreditation

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what action he is taking to support local technical agreements on skills acquisition and accreditation between employers and further education colleges below national Sector Skills Council requirements.

Ivan Lewis: The aim of our recently published skills strategy, "21st Century Skills—Realising Our Potential", is to ensure that employers have the right skills to support the success of their businesses, and individuals have the skills they need to be both employable and personally fulfilled. As with "Success for All", the Department's strategy for the reform of further education, a key part of the strategy is to ensure that colleges and training providers are more responsive to the needs of employers, and those of individual learners. Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) will lead the drive to increase productivity and develop the required skills within their industry sectors. Through sector skills agreements they will work with their employers and with planning and funding agencies like the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) to agree an action plan for addressing priority skills needs. However, further education colleges will continue to determine the specific range and volume of courses they offer and will need to continue to be responsive to their local employers, providing bespoke training based on local agreements as appropriate. The pattern of provision will continue to be agreed in discussion with the local LSC, reflecting national and regional priorities as well of those of the locality.

Student Finance

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what information he collates on differences in the recovery of outstanding student loans from graduates who are (a) based in the United Kingdom and (b) resident abroad.

Alan Johnson: Student loans are available to students domiciled in the United Kingdom. Data are collected on the payment and repayment of student loans, separately for income contingent loans (which were introduced in September 1998 as part of the new student support arrangements) and mortgage style loans (mostly applying to those who entered higher education before academic year 1998/99). These data are split according to the domicile of the borrower at the point of entering HE.
	Data on the current residence of the mortgage style loan borrowers are not available in the Department. The recovery regime for these loans is the same for all borrowers whether resident in or outside of the UK. These loans are repayable on a mortgage style basis over five or seven years, depending on the number of loans taken out. Borrowers may apply to defer repayments for up to a year at a time if their income is below the current deferment threshold, otherwise repayments will be collected, whether the borrower is overseas or not.
	Repayments of income contingent loans from borrowers resident in the UK are reported at the time when the Student Loans Company are notified of the repayments by the Inland Revenue, which may be one or more years after the tax year they relate to. Due to the time lag in collecting the information from the Inland Revenue it is too early in the scheme to have robust data for either comparison or trend purposes.
	The Student Loans Company operates a separate recovery regime for income contingent loan borrowers who are outside of the UK tax system. The mechanism for collecting repayments requires borrowers to declare their total annual income to the SLC who calculate the repayment due, mirroring the rules applying to borrowers within the tax system. Sufficient robust data are not yet available.

Teacher Workloads

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what meetings he has had with (a) the Secondary Heads Association, (b) the Local Government Association, (c) the National Union of Teachers, (d) National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers and (e) National Association of Head Teachers with regard to the teachers workload agreement since January.

David Miliband: I have chaired several of the regular meetings of the Workforce Agreement Monitoring Group, which comprises representatives from the signatories to the Agreement. The group includes SHA, NAHT, NASUWT and the LGA.
	The NUT chose not to sign the National Agreement and have therefore excluded themselves from those meetings. However, I recently met a delegation from the NUT to discuss their response to the statutory consultation on implementing the National Agreement, which included changes to the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document, draft regulations to be made under section 133 of the Education Act 2002 and accompanying guidance.

Vocational Qualifications

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to improve the collection of data on the number of people who enter higher education on the basis of (a) vocational and (b) work-based learning qualifications.

Alan Johnson: The main source of data on the entry qualifications of HE students is the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record. This already identifies students with vocational qualifications and non-academic qualifications (such as accreditation of prior learning). The student record is reviewed regularly to ensure that it collects data which are relevant and fit for purpose, for instance the 2002/03 return has been enhanced to identify students funded by the University for Industry.

CABINET OFFICE

Information Technology

John Pugh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Cabinet Office spent on IT licences in 2002–03.

Douglas Alexander: The Cabinet Office spent £3,569,807 on IT licences in 2002–03.

Information Technology

John Pugh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Cabinet Office spent on (a) IT hardware, (b) software and (c) maintenance in 2002–03.

Douglas Alexander: The Cabinet Office spent £4,094,292 on IT hardware, £1,800,331 on software and £11,249,997 on maintenance in 2002–03.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Counter-terrorism

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will conduct counter-terrorism exercises with respect to (a) aviation and (b) shipping. [R]

David Blunkett: Our current counter-terrorism exercise programme involves both aviation and maritime scenarios.

Acting Chief Constable Richard Thomas

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of the investigation into the alleged conduct of the acting Chief Constable Richard Thomas of Gwent police.

Hazel Blears: Gwent police informs me that the West Mercia police conducted the investigation. The total of all invoices received and paid by Gwent police amounts to £20,476.66.

Asylum Seekers

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in his Department deal with immigration and asylum issues, broken down by section; and what the function of each section is.

Beverley Hughes: The number of full-time equivalent staff in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate by business area, at 30 June 2003 was:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Immigration Service—(including border controls and removals) 6,500 
			 Asylum support, asylum casework and appeals 2,830 
			 Managed Migration (applications for leave to remain, nationality and work permits) 1,690 
			 Non-operational (includes policy development and corporate services) 1,880

Asylum Seekers

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assistance is given to successful asylum applicants to help them integrate within their new community.

Beverley Hughes: Our strategy "Full and Equal Citizens", which we will be reviewing shortly, sets out the Government's cross-departmental strategy for the integration of refugees. It is monitored by the National Refugee Integration Forum, which I chair. In addition to the work of other Departments as set out in the strategy, the Home Office itself helps fund a number of community development programmes being taken forward by the leading national and regional refugee organisations. In addition, we fund small community groups working with refugees through the Refugee Community Development Fund. The Challenge Fund and the European Refugee Fund have also been established on the basis of providing a carefully evaluated programme of projects to identify what does work in integration.

Asylum Seekers

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children have been (a) refused and (b) granted asylum since March 2003.

Beverley Hughes: The table shows the outcomes of initial decisions made on applicants aged under-18 at the time of their decision. These figures exclude dependants, and are based on the claimed age of applicants. The figures will overstate the true number of initial decisions since some applicants aged 18 or over claim to be younger than that in their application. Initial decisions may relate to applications made in earlier periods.
	
		Initial decisions outcomes for asylum applicants claiming to be aged under-18 at time of initial decision(9),(10),(11),(12)
		
			 Principal applicants (cases) 2002 Q1 2003  (January to March) Q2 2003  (April to June) 
		
		
			 Total initial decisions 11,200 3,085 1,690 
			 Granted asylum 960 210 85 
			 Granted exceptional leave 6,620 1,835 n/a 
			 Granted humanitarian protection n/a n/a 10 
			 Granted discretionary leave n/a n/a 925 
			 Refused 3,625 1,040 670 
		
	
	(9) Figures are rounded to the nearest 5.
	(10) Excluding the outcome of appeals or other subsequent decisions.
	(11) Figures may overstate because some applicants aged 18 or over may claim to be younger on leaving their country of origin.
	(12) Data are provisional.
	Information on the number and outcomes of initial decisions is published quarterly on the Home Office website at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html

Asylum Seekers

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Turkish citizens applied for asylum in the UK in 2001; and how many were successful in their application.

Beverley Hughes: 3,695 nationals of Turkey applied for asylum in the United Kingdom in 2001 (excluding dependants). In 2001, there were 7,825 initial decisions made on asylum applications from Turkish nationals, 210 grants of asylum, 275 grants of exceptional leave to remain (ELR), and 7,340 refusals. Data on initial decisions in 2001 may relate to applications made in earlier years.
	During 2001, 1,840 appeals against Home Office decisions on Turkish asylum claims were determined by adjudicators of the Immigration Appellate Authority (IAA). Of these, 485 were allowed, 1,295 were dismissed and 60 cases were withdrawn. Appeal outcomes in 2001 may relate to initial decisions made in earlier years. The figures exclude any further appeals (Immigration Appeals Tribunal, Court of Appeal, judicial review, House of Lords).
	Information on the number of asylum applications and initial decisions is published quarterly on the Home Office website at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html

Charities

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the organisations that responded, and how they responded, to the idea of self-regulation contained within "Charities and Not-For-Profits: A Modern Legal Framework", giving the type of respondent.

Fiona Mactaggart: The recommendations on self-regulation in fundraising were made by the Strategy Unit in its review of charity law and regulation ("Private Action, Public Benefit", published September 2002).
	In its response to the review ("Charities and Not-for- Profits: a Modern Legal Framework", published 16 July 2003) the Government supported the idea that self-regulation should be the first resort in improving fundraising standards.
	The following people and organisations commented on the recommendations on self-regulation in fundraising:
	Action on Disability and Development
	Action for Street Kids
	Agents for Change
	Allen and Overy solicitors
	Alzheimer's Society
	Archbishops Council
	Association of Charitable Foundations
	Association of Charity Independent Examiners
	Association of Charity Officers
	Association of Charity Shops
	Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations
	Association of Corporate Trustees
	Association of Fundraising Consultants
	Association of Preservation Trusts
	Baker Tilly accountants
	Barnardo's
	Bates, Wells and Braithwaite solicitors
	Birmingham Voluntary Service Council
	Birmingham Charities Council
	Birmingham City Council
	Black Training and Enterprise Group
	Blandford Forum Town Council
	Blue Cross
	Bristol City Council
	British Association of Settlements and Social Action Centres
	British Heart Foundation
	British Limbless Ex-Servicemen's Association
	British Overseas Aid Group
	British Red Cross
	British Trust for Conservation Volunteers
	Campaign for Protection of Rural Wales
	Cancer Research UK
	Caring Together
	Catholic Agency for Overseas Development
	Chantrey Vellacott DFK accountants
	Charities Aid Foundation
	Charity Check
	Charity Commission
	Charity Law Association
	Charles Russell solicitors
	Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management
	Chesterfield and North-East Derbyshire Council for Voluntary Service
	Children's Society
	Christian Aid
	Church in Wales
	Community Matters
	Consumers' Association
	Countryside Agency
	Craigmyle
	Crossroads Association
	Denbighshire Voluntary Services Council
	Derby Mountain Rescue Team
	Development Trusts Association
	Dicky Tickers Heart Support Group
	Diocese of St. Asaph, Church in Wales
	Directory of Social Change
	Disabilities Trust
	Duke of Edinburgh's Award
	Dyson Bell solicitors
	Ethical Investment Research Service
	Evelina Family Trust
	Exeter Council for Voluntary Service
	Fairbridge
	Fifth Estate
	Friends of the Earth and Friends of the Earth Charitable Trust
	Fruitful Fundraising
	Grant Thornton accountants
	Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity
	Growing Place
	Guideposts Trust
	Guy's and St. Thomas' Charitable Foundation
	Help the Aged
	WH Henderson
	Home Farm Trust
	Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
	Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators
	Institute of Fundraising
	Jordans
	Kingston Smith accountants
	Law Society
	Leonard Cheshire Foundation
	Lichfield and District Council for Voluntary Service
	LionHeart
	Local Government Association
	London Play
	London Voluntary Service Council
	RJA Lonsdale
	Macmillan Cancer Relief
	Marie Curie Cancer Care
	Mazars accountants
	Middle Temple Charitable Trusts
	Roger Morton
	Motability
	Multiple Sclerosis Society
	Muscular Dystrophy Campaign
	National Association of Independent Schools and Non-Maintained Special Schools
	National Confederation of Parent Teacher Associations
	National Council for Voluntary Organisations
	National Library for the Blind
	National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
	National Trust
	Northamptonshire ACRE
	Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action
	Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations
	Oxfam
	People's Dispensary for Sick Animals
	PricewaterhouseCoopers
	Public Fundraising Regulatory Association
	Purbeck District Council
	Raise
	Regional Action West Midlands
	Reigate and Banstead Borough Council
	rethink
	Rose Road Association
	Royal British Legion
	Royal College of General Practitioners
	Royal National Institute of the Blind
	Royal National Institute for Deaf People
	Royal National Lifeboat Institute
	Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
	Runnymede Borough Council
	Salvation Army
	Emma Sambrook
	St. Martins Housing Trust
	St. Oswald's Hospice, Newcastle
	Andrew Scadding and Adele Shaw
	School Library Association
	Scope
	SPARKS
	SSAFA Forces Help
	Staffordshire Moorlands Council for Voluntary Service
	Surrey Care Trust
	Swindon Borough Council
	University Hospital Birmingham Charities
	Voluntary Action Camden
	Voluntary Organisations' Network North East
	War on Want
	Warwick District Council for Voluntary Service
	Welsh Assembly Government
	Wessex Medical Trust
	West Midlands Charity Trustees Forum
	West Somerset District Council
	Woking Borough Council
	Women's Aid
	Women's Royal Voluntary Service
	Woodland Trust
	Marnie Woodward
	WWF-UK
	Wychavon District Council
	Julia Wylie solicitor
	YMCA England
	Yorkshire Rural Community Council
	Levels of support by these respondents for the Strategy Unit's recommendations for self-regulation in fundraising, broken down by type of respondent, are shown in the table:
	
		
			 Type of respondent Clear support Some support Non-committal Some opposition Clear opposition 
		
		
			 Small charities — — — — 1 
			 Independent schools — — — — — 
			 Large charities 17 28 1 5 2 
			 Medium charities 7 3 — — 1 
			 Umbrella bodies 13 5 — 2 1 
			 Others — — — — — 
			 Charity workers 3 2 — 1 1 
			 Professional advisers 3 11 1 1 2 
			 Special interest bodies 2 5 2 — 1 
			 Government — 4 1 3 6 
			 Umbrella bodies for small charities 5 3 1 1 — 
			 Voluntary organisations 3 — — — — 
			 Social enterprises — — — — — 
			 Professional bodies — 4 — — — 
			 Academics — — — — — 
			 Total 53 65 6 13 15

Child Trafficking

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment his Department has made of recommendations put forward in the UNICEF report, "Stop the Traffic", to assist victims of child trafficking in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The Government welcome the UNICEF report drawing attention to the heinous crime of trafficking. Work is already in hand to develop a better understanding of the scale of child trafficking, and the Home Office has sponsored research by the International Organisation for Migration that will be presented to a major EU conference later this month.
	Work to develop intelligence and co-ordinate operations against trafficking is the responsibility of Reflex, the multi-agency response to organised immigration crime. Reflex has supported Operation Paladin Child which is profiling unaccompanied children arriving at Heathrow, as well as similar exercises at Gatwick and Dover.
	The Sexual Offences Bill, currently before Parliament, introduces wide ranging criminal sanctions covering trafficking and sexual exploitation of children. We are committed to introducing legislation covering trafficking for other purposes when parliamentary time permits.
	Responsibility for child protection falls to Social Services under the Children Act 1989. There are wide ranging proposals for changes to the child protection arrangements contained in the Green Paper, "Every Child Matters", published recently. In particular, co-ordination arrangements between social services and the police will be enhanced through greater clarity over the responsibilities of Area Child Protection Committees. The Home Office has developed a Trafficking Toolkit, published earlier this year, with practical advice around identifying and supporting victims of trafficking that is available to police and social services.

Child Trafficking

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans his Department has to introduce a system whereby victims of child trafficking are given leave to stay in the UK for a period of reflection of up to six months; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: There are no plans to introduce a blanket reflection period for the victims of trafficking, children or adults. Rather, each case is considered on its individual merits.

Child Trafficking

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what resources his Department will make available to provide for specialist training for immigration officers and social workers in order to (a) help them identify cases of child trafficking and (b) provide them with the necessary skills to assist victims of child trafficking; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The Government are committed to protecting trafficked children, and have recently announced a Children's Commissioner for England and other measures to protect vulnerable children in the wake of the recommendations from the Laming Inquiry into the tragic death of Victoria Climbié.
	All immigration officers are already trained to a high standard in interviewing skills. In addition to this, the Immigration Service is shortly to deliver specialist training to around 600 operational members of staff nation-wide. Central to the theme of the course will be that children arriving in the UK may be here as a result of coercion or criminal activity, including trafficking.
	Immigration officers also receive regular intelligence bulletins and inter-agency briefings that highlight issues and trends in respect of trafficking so that they may make informed decisions. All UK immigration officers at ports of entry have been issued with a profile of potential child trafficking victims.
	The Home Office has also recently published a 'trafficking toolkit', providing guidance for immigration officers on how to recognise a victim of trafficking and what to do if such a victim is encountered. A vice team consisting of specially selected immigration officers has also been established in London. The team is fully aware of the procedures for the identification of trafficked children.
	It is for local councils to decide training priorities for social workers. However, the Government have made £6 million available in the Training Support Programme grant for post-qualification specialist training for social workers, with a target of 7,000 social workers awarded the Child Care Post-qualifying Award by 2006.
	There is also new post-qualifying funding for social workers in the Human Resources Development Strategy grant at £0.5 million this year, rising to £13 million by 2005–06.

Child Trafficking

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans his Department has to provide central funding for specialist care and protection for the victims of child trafficking in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Child victims of trafficking are referred to social services to receive assistance and support based on their particular needs. Social services have a duty under the Children Act 1989 to safeguard and promote the welfare of children who are in need by providing a range and level of services appropriate to those children's needs or, where appropriate, by arranging for the provision of services from other agencies. Child victims of trafficking are likely to be in need of welfare services and—in many cases—protection under the Children Act 1989.
	There is no current specific earmarked funding for services of this nature. Instead, Government funding is allocated to councils with social services responsibilities on the basis of the needs of their populations. A weighted capitation formula is used to determine each body's target fair share of available resources. It is, therefore, for councils, working in partnership with relevant stakeholders, to determine their spending priorities on the basis of local needs.

Entitlement Card Scheme

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria he has set to evaluate the success of his Department's pilot entitlement card scheme.

Beverley Hughes: The Government have not announced that they will be piloting an entitlement card scheme. My hon. Friend is probably referring to press reports of a proposed UK Passport Service project to pilot the recording of facial recognition, fingerprint and iris image biometric information for passports and the proposed passport card. Discussions with short-listed suppliers are still continuing.

Fixed Penalty Notices

Patsy Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many motorists who were served with a fixed penalty notice for speeding in 2002–03 as a result of information recorded on speed cameras were subsequently informed that a mistake had been made and that no prosecution would result.

Hazel Blears: This information is not collected centrally.

Fixed Penalty Notices

Patsy Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are in place for ensuring that motorists are not served with fixed penalty notices for speeding when the details of their vehicle are incorrectly recorded.

Hazel Blears: Before the issue of a fixed penalty notice, officers analysing offences caught on film check the registration of the car against the DVLA record and the police national computer. A further check is made on the vehicle model and colour. Plans by a number of police forces to introduce in the near future automated viewing technology into the system should further reduce errors. Where an error is identified, the notice is withdrawn and the situation investigated to see whether further operative training or other remedial action is required.
	The most likely reason for an innocent person to be sent a fixed penalty notice is that the vehicle detected had been stolen and given the registration of another registered vehicle to disguise it. The police take this type of criminal activity very seriously and investigate each case thoroughly. To help counter the problem, it has been a requirement since January to show proof of entitlement when buying a number plate; number plate suppliers have to be registered with DVLA and maintain records of transactions. DVLA are currently conducting a consultation exercise on the possible incorporation on number plates of additional features which would make it more difficult to display them on vehicles for which they were not intended.

Foreign Travel Documents

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the policy of the Passport Office is on advising members of the public about the travel documents required for foreign travel.

Beverley Hughes: The UK Passport Service (UKPS) has a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy that includes a range of initiatives to advise members of the public about the passport requirements for foreign travel. UKPS works closely with the travel trade and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to ensure that timely and relevant information is conveyed. UKPS advises travellers to check with relevant embassies about visa requirements and length of passport validity which must remain to travel to each country as these are matters for them to determine. UKPS also distributes its literature to a range of organisations including the Citizens' Advice Bureau and Registrars offices throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
	Media campaigns are normally planned to take place in early January and autumn each year to remind customers to think about their passport requirements and act as early as possible. Most recently UKPS and the FCO worked together to publicise the new requirements for travel to USA, about which there are ongoing discussions between the FCO and US.
	The UKPS has a range of information channels, which it utilises to convey its messages. These include:
	an established 24 x 7 Passport Adviceline on 0870 521 0410;
	a comprehensive website at www.passport.gov.uk; and
	a network of high street partners which include the Post Office and Worldchoice travel agents.
	All these contact details are shown in media advertising.
	The UKPS also produces contact cards, which are available via its website, to businesses, voluntary organisations etc. who wish to provide their clients with contact details for the UK Passport Service.

Forensic Science Service

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received regarding the proposed privatisation of the Forensic Science Service; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: In his statement of 17 July 2003, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary explained the reasons for the proposal that the Forensic Science Service should become a public private partnership. To date, representations about the future status of the organisation have been received from two trade unions, Prospect and PCS, from Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the TUC, and from 71 hon. Members.

Graffiti

Ivan Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what initiatives his Department has introduced since 1997 to tackle the problems of graffiti.

Hazel Blears: Graffiti and abandoned vehicles spoil our enjoyment of public places, and can increase fear of crime and produce an environment where crime and anti-social behaviour can thrive. They are a burden on businesses and the local authorities that are left to clean up graffiti on property and remove abandoned vehicles. The annual cost of graffiti clean up in London alone is £23 million.
	We are introducing a package of measures to prevent graffiti and to ensure that it is removed swiftly when it does occur:
	The Anti-Social Behaviour Bill contains proposals to give local authorities new powers to clean graffiti from certain types of private property, including cable boxes, post boxes, phone booths, and property associated with public transport.
	The Bill also contains proposals to ban the sale of spray paints to under 19s. The sale of aerosols will be controlled in much the same way that the sale of glue and solvent are currently controlled. The bill also proposes to give local authorities power to issue Fixed Penalty Notices for graffiti and fly posting. Offenders would have to pay a £50 penalty or be prosecuted through the courts. Councils already use these powers to tackle littering.
	The Criminal Justice Bill contains measures to close the loophole which prevents the police from searching for items which they suspect may be intended for use in causing criminal damage, such as spray paints.
	It is estimated that 238,000 vehicles were abandoned in 2000–01. These nuisance vehicles become a magnet for arson and anti-social behaviour. Measures introduced to tackle this problem include:
	In 2002 the period of notice that local authorities and the DVLA need to give before removing and disposing of nuisance vehicles was reduced. Local authorities now only need to give 24 hours notice of their intention to remove an abandoned vehicle of value. Abandoned vehicles of no value can be removed to a pound immediately—and local authorities now only need to wait seven days before disposing of them. We also made it possible for local authorities to take on DVLA powers to tackle unlicensed vehicles.
	Continuous registration comes into to force from January 2004. From then, the keeper of a vehicle will be responsible for licensing it until DVLA is informed of its disposal. This will enable more rigorous enforcement action against those dumping vehicles.
	There is a lot of good practice already taking place. The "Operation Cubit" model brings together agencies such as the police, local authorities and the DVLA to take action in an area blighted by nuisance vehicles. We will be looking in the coming months at how best to rollout these successes, in the context of our anti-social behaviour agenda.

International Student Visas

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what annual income his Department expects to gain from introducing charges for international student visas.

Beverley Hughes: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary announced in February 2002 in his White Paper: Secure Borders, Safe Haven: Integration with Diversity in Modern Britain, that he would be introducing charges in order to fund the modernisation of Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND). The regulations were laid on 10 July. IND already charges fee in respect of Nationality applications, for Travel Documents, and since 1 April this year for work permits.
	We continue to welcome the many foreign nationals, who choose to study, work and live in the UK—they boost our economy and add to our thriving cosmopolitan society. Many apply to extend their stay each year, and it is right that they should meet the costs of that.
	The Government have made significant investment in recent years to improve all aspects of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate, including the standard of service people receive when they submit applications. Charging will help us to continue to improve the efficiency and the speed with which we process these applications, leading to ever-higher levels of customer service.
	The estimated revenue from the introduction of charging for leave to remain applications is £90 million.
	The estimated revenue from international students is approximately £21 million per annum.

International Student Visas

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will monitor charges for international student visas to see whether they have a deterrent effect.

Beverley Hughes: The fees are set under Treasury rules to recover the full administrative cost entailed in considering applications and no more. This is calculated by taking the overall costs of processing applications divided by the number of decisions we expect to make.
	Treasury rules require us to undertake an annual fee review at which point we will monitor the level of applications that we have received.
	However, there are many factors which affect the level of intake of applications so it would not be right to conclude without detailed analysis that any perceived decrease was solely due to the introduction of charging.

Leicestershire Police

Stephen Dorrell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many vacancies there are for uniformed officers in the Leicestershire Police Service; and what proportion this represents of the approved establishment in Leicestershire.

Hazel Blears: The establishment figures for the end of 2003 was 2,127 officers. Leicestershire police estimate that they will take approximately 207 recruits in 2003–04; which they estimate will bring establishment up to 2,235 by the end of 2003–04. There are currently around 174 vacancies for new applicants (September figures) and recruitment is healthy. This represents approximately eight per cent. of expected establishment. These vacancies will vary on a day to day basis.
	The Home Office does not set establishment figures for police forces and no central record is kept of vacancies. Decisions about the use of resources, including decisions about the number and deployment of police officers are matters for the police authority and the Chief Constable.

Open Prisons

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his strategy to minimise the number of prisoners who abscond from open prisons.

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service strategy to minimise the number of prisoners who abscond from open prisons contains a number of strands:
	a thorough risk assessment process aimed at identifying prisoners suitable for the particular regime and nature of the open estate, including better collation of intelligence data and improved reception procedures;
	physical security upgrades at individual establishments, subject to their own risk assessment process, including better lighting and patrols;
	regular monitoring, on a monthly basis of abscond rates nationally, reported to the director of operations for onward dissemination to area managers;
	analysis of trends, including the impact of population increases which will be fed into the current review of categorisation.

Organ Donors

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance his Department has given to electoral registration officers about allowing the annual registration process to be used as means of increasing organ donors; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: I have been asked to reply.
	My Department has issued no recent guidance to electoral registration officers (EROs) on this subject. I am aware, however, that the independent Electoral Commission issued advice to EROs on 22 July 2003 which, while recognising the independence and responsibility of individual EROs, set out the Commission's view that additional material unrelated to electoral issues should not be included with registration forms.

Police Standards Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how performance will be measured for the Head of the Police Standards Unit in assessing his performance related pay.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 16 July 2003
	In common with the principles in place for a number of members of the senior civil service across Government, the Head of the Police Standards Unit will be entitled to an annual bonus, of up to 15 per cent. of his basic salary, subject to his performance against a set of specific objectives and targets to be agreed at the start of each reporting period between himself and the Permanent Secretary, Crime, Policing, Counter-Terrorism and Delivery in the Home Office.

Publicly Funded Investigations

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will seek powers to ensure that the conclusions of all publicly funded investigations into the conduct of senior police officers are made public.

Hazel Blears: The Secretary of State has no plans to do so.
	The investigation into allegations against senior officers is a matter for the relevant police authority or where the senior officer has left the force and a criminal investigation takes place, the chief officer. They own the report into the investigation and are acquainted with the facts of the case and any decision on disclosure is a matter for them.
	However, the new complaints system which is due to be introduced from April 2004, under provisions in the Police Reform Act 2002, will place a clear duty on those responsible for an investigation to keep the complainant properly informed during, and at the end of, an investigation. The presumption will be on openness, specifically allowing for the disclosure of the investigation report, subject to a sensitivity test.

Secondments (Iraq)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many British police officers are to be sent to Iraq; for how long they will remain there; how their pay and conditions will vary from that in the UK; on what criteria the selection is made; what risk assessment has been carried out; what assessment the Department has made of the effect on crime (a) prevention and (b) detection in the UK of sending officers to Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: I have agreed to a request from my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary (Jack Straw) to ask the Association of Chief Police Officers to seek up to 200 volunteers to create a pool of United Kingdom police officers for potential deployment to Iraq. The pool is intended to sustain the deployment of up to 100 United Kingdom officers at any one time. Some may be deployed to a third country to assist in the out of country training of the Iraqi police service.
	If UK police officers are required they will be deployed for six to 12 month periods. The terms and conditions of service of police officers from English and Welsh police forces will be protected under section 26 of the Police Act 1996. Officers will be recruited according to experience and the skills required for the post. The preliminary selection procedure is a matter for each force. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office will conduct the final selection process following recommendations on applicants' suitability from forces.
	Every effort will be made to ensure police officers' safety while on mission. Officers will be deployed only when conditions are right. The security position will be reviewed regularly. The advice of the two secondees from the Association of Chief Police Officers presently serving in Iraq will continue to inform any decision on the timing of a deployment of United Kingdom police officers to Iraq. When we judge that conditions are right for deployment, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will approach the Home Office with proposals to draw on the pool.
	I have considered the demands on domestic policing resources. The deployment of 100 UK police officers to assist Iraq is within the contingency plans for overall police contributions to peacekeeping missions that have been agreed between the Government and the Association of Chief Police Officers. Chief constables and police authorities will take account of local policing requirements before deciding whether to release officers.

Security (Royal Family)

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to ensure that the security arrangements in place for members of the Royal Family (a) while travelling and (b) while in residence are appropriate; and what plans he has to review these.

David Blunkett: Security arrangements for the Royal Family while travelling or in residence are subject to continual review.
	It is policy not to comment in detail on such security measures, as to do so may compromise the safety of those for whom such measures have been taken.

Sexual Assaults

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Government will adopt the recommendations of the Home Affairs Committee on the liability of employers for sexual assaults committed by their employees.

David Lammy: The Home Affairs Committee recommended that legislation should be introduced to overturn the House of Lords decision in Lister v Hesley Hall Ltd. in relation to the vicarious liability of an employer for sexual assaults by an employee. The Government do not propose to change the law in this area. The law on vicarious liability is wholly common law based, and has been developed by the courts over many years. It is not desirable or practicable to replace it by statute in one particular set of circumstances in which vicarious liability may be held to apply. It is preferable that the courts should continue to have the flexibility to consider all the circumstances of an individual case.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the sites of special scientific interest in the ownership of his Department or its agencies.

Fiona Mactaggart: The Home Office has seven establishments, which incorporate Sites of Special Scientific Interest. They are:
	HMP Dartmoor;
	HMP Frankland;
	HMP Hewell Grange;
	HMP and YOI Hollesley Bay;
	HMP Leyhill;
	HMP North Sea Camp; and
	HMP and YOI Prescoed.

UK Passport and Records Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are employed by the UK Passport and Records Agency; and what the figure was in each of the last three years.

Beverley Hughes: The number of employees within the UK Passport Service throughout the year varies to match the seasonal pattern of demand. August is traditionally a period when employment levels are at there highest. As at 31 August 2003 the UK Passport Service employed 2,429 full time equivalent employees.
	In the last three financial years the average number of employees at the Passport Service has been:
	2002–03—2,384
	2001–02—2,426
	2000–01—2,238

Work Permits

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list all applications of Football League clubs for work permits for foreign players which have been refused in the last 18 months; what the grounds for issuing work permits to overseas footballers are; whether different criteria apply when considering applications from other professions; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The tables provide detail of the numbers of applications received from Premier and Football League Clubs in England and Scotland for overseas players. The information is broken down by season and includes, where applicable, the outcomes of any review panels held. It is not possible to provide detail of the individual applications refused for reasons of confidentiality.
	Work permits are issued to international footballers of the highest calibre who are able to make a significant contribution to the development of the UK game at the highest level. A player must have played for his country in at least 75 per cent. of its competitive 'A' team matches for which he was available for selection during the two years preceding the date of the application. Additionally, the player's country must be at or above 70th place in the official FIFA world rankings when averaged over the preceding two years. Where an application does not meet these criteria, the club may seek a review of this decision by an independent review panel of football experts.
	The criteria for work permit applications for sportspeople are agreed, sport by sport, in consultation with the respective governing bodies and are reviewed on an annual basis. The criteria which apply to any given sport reflect the stage of development of that sport in the UK and are made public via the Work Permits (UK) website.
	
		Professional football applications for 2002–03 season—summary
		
			  Number 
		
		
			  
			  
			 Applications received (England and Scotland) 61 
			 Applications approved 35 
			 Applications refused 25 
			 Applications withdrawn 1 
			 Reviews received 21 
			 Successful reviews 13 
			 Unsuccessful reviews 7 
			 Reviews withdrawn 1 
			 Total approvals 48 
			 Total refusals 12 
			 Total withdrawn 1 
		
	
	
		Professional football applications for 2003–04 seasonto 1 September 2003—summary
		
			  Number 
		
		
			  
			  
			 Applications received (England and Scotland) 40 
			 Applications approved 23 
			 Applications refused 16 
			 Applications withdrawn 1 
			 Reviews received 14 
			 Successful reviews 11 
			 Unsuccessful reviews 3 
			 Reviews withdrawn — 
			 Total approvals 34 
			 Total refusals 5 
			 Total withdrawn 1 
		
	
	Note:
	No applications were received from League of Wales or Northern Ireland

NORTHERN IRELAND

Autistic Spectrum Disorder

John Hume: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what guidance he gives on the extent to which pre-school children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can benefit from appropriate pre-school education; whether the current main-stream nursery education classes are resourced to deal with children with ASD; and if he will make a statement about plans to provide specialist pre-school education for children with ASD.

Jane Kennedy: The Department of Education's Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs (SEN) gives clear guidance to Education and Library Boards (ELBs) and schools (including mainstream nursery schools) on meeting the needs of children with special educational needs, including Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD).
	The ELBs are resourced to support children with ASD in mainstream nursery schools in a variety of ways. Provision may include classroom assistance, or support from ASD Advisory Officers or peripatetic teachers. The boards also provide training in aspects of Special Educational Needs, including ASD.
	The Northern Task Group Report on Autism endorsed early intervention for children with ASD. The Department of Education is working closely with the ELBs and the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to prioritise the recommendations of the report, with a view to improving collaborative working and available provision.
	Through existing Special Needs legislation ELBs have a qualified duty to secure education for children with SEN in a mainstream placement. The proposed Special Educational Needs and Disability legislation will strengthen the presumption to inclusion. However, the level and type of provision is assessed by the boards on an individual basis and ELBs continue to make specialist provision for children with ASD based on identified needs. The Department of Education and the ELBs are taking work forward to consider how best to enhance SEN provision in the pre-school sector.

Belfast Regeneration Office

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his policy is on an Action Plan round for the Belfast Regeneration Office in the financial year 2004–05.

John Spellar: With the launch of the Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy Government has begun to explore the possibility of reallocating Action Plan moneys towards neighbourhood renewal as Action Plan has suffered from sizeable under-spends in recent years. Until decisions have been taken on this issue however it is not clear whether there will be future calls for applications under the Action Plan.

Belfast Regeneration Office

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many Belfast Regeneration Office teams have issued letters indicating that they are now closed for applications; which teams issued such letters; and when they were issued.

John Spellar: The four Belfast Regeneration Office Area Teams, including Inner West, Outer West, North and South & East Teams issued a letter on 29 July 2003, to all community groups on the BRO database. This letter indicated that each BRO Team would not be open to new applications from 1 August 2003, as Area Team budgets would shortly be fully committed for the 2003–04 financial year.

Belfast Regeneration Office

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the budget for each of the Belfast Regeneration Office teams is in the current financial year; and how much of each team's budget (a) was spent, (b) was committed and (c) remained uncommitted when they closed for applications.

John Spellar: The table shows the budget for each Belfast Regeneration Office (BRO) Team for 2003–04, in addition to (a) amount spent, (b) amount committed and (c) amount uncommitted at 29 July 2003, when the Teams indicated that they were closing to applications. It should be noted that although each Team had moneys uncommitted at 29 July, there existed applications in the system which had not yet been processed. Column (d) on the table shows the potential value of the applications currently under assessment.
	
		£
		
			   (a) (b) (c) (d) 
			 BRO team Team budget 2003–04 (b+c) Amountspent Amountcommitted Amountuncommitted Potential value of applications currently under assessment 
		
		
			 Inner West 1,284,500.00 253,456.79 801,175.68 483,324.32 1,171,202.25 
			 Outer West 1,045,500.00 128,529.99 300,554.22 744,945.78 1,560,711.35 
			 South & East 978,500.00 166,922.56 501,222.46 477,277.54 942,216.38 
			 North 1,207,000.00 116,252.00 356,833.00 850,166.00 1,400,000.00

Belfast Regeneration Office

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the Belfast Regeneration Office Strategy will be launched.

John Spellar: The Government's Strategy for the regeneration of Belfast will be articulated in two documents, namely:
	The Neighbourhood Renewal Implementation Plan for Belfast which will be published in April 2004. This will follow consultation on the draft implementation plan which we will issue shortly.
	The Belfast City Centre Policy Framework document which was the subject of consultation ending on 12 September 2003.

Belfast/London Flights

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what representations he has received about the number of flights between Belfast and London.

John Spellar: None. I understand any such representations have mainly been directed towards the airline operators.

Cross-border Health Care

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total cost of providing health care within Northern Ireland for residents of the Republic of Ireland was over the last 12 months.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Budgets

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he will publish the complete needs and effectiveness evaluations in respect of departmental budgetary matters.

Ian Pearson: The Northern Ireland Executive initiated work on the needs and effectiveness evaluations in 2001. The main findings from the effectiveness report on financial assistance to industry have already been released on the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment's website. Further release of the effectiveness studies will be made subject to agreement with appropriate Ministers. As far as needs assessment is concerned the Government have no plans to review the Barnett formula.

Departmental Reform Plans

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what reform plans have been produced by each Government Department; what assessment he has made of those plans; what Departments have not produced such plans; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: All Departments have produced reform plans as part of their service delivery agreements (SDAs) which are available on departmental websites and can be accessed through the Northern Ireland administration website, www.northernireland.gov.uk. In addition, copies of each SDA have been placed in the Library. The reform plans constitute initial departmental responses to the Reform Agenda and reflect the importance of reform of public services to the work of both this Administration and the Northern Ireland Executive.

Departmental Under Spending

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are being taken to address the underspending of Government Departments through more co-ordinated financial planning; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: On the basis of underspends in previous years an action plan to address this issue was set out in a Statement to the Assembly on 1 July 2002 by the then Minister of Finance and Personnel. This included setting spending plans at a level which exceeded the actual spending power available by building in underspend assumptions, and the revised spending plans for 2003–04 to 2005–06, announced on 11 December 2002, built on that approach. Full details are set out in Section 2 of the Budget Document ("Building on Progress: Budget 2003–2006").

Disabled Housing Adaptations

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the waiting time for an assessment by an occupational therapist in respect of disabled housing adaptations is; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Smith: Information is not available on the current waiting time for an assessment by an occupational therapist in respect of disabled housing adaptations, as an assessment for housing adaptation can only be designated as such when the assessment is completed. In addition, waiting time varies according to the complexity of the case and the availability of resources to carry out the assessment. The amount of time waited for assessment to commence is, however, recorded in respect of all persons assessed by community occupational therapists, according to time band. Figures for priority and non-priority cases are shown in the table and refer to assessments which commenced in the quarter ending 31 March 2003, the latest date for which such information is available.
	
		Number of assessments commenced, by time waited for assessment, quarter ending 31 March 2003
		
			 Time waited Number 
		
		
			 (a) Priority cases  
			 Under 2 weeks 3,758 
			 2 weeks—under 1 month 774 
			 1 month and over 982 
			 Total assessments commenced 5,514 
			 (b) Non-priority cases  
			 Under 3 months 2,850 
			 3—under 6 months 505 
			 6 months and over 1,431 
			 Total assessments commenced 4,786 
		
	
	Implementation of the recommendations of the joint Housing Executive/Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety review of the housing adaptations service, carried out in 2000–01, together with the additional 20 occupational therapy posts funded by the Department in 2001–02, is improving the efficiency of the service. Health and Social Services Trusts continue to strive to further improve the service.

Equality Commission

Seamus Mallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will involve the Equality Commission in the review of the operation of section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 2000 envisaged by paragraph 10 of Annex 3 to the Joint Declaration.

John Spellar: The structure of the review is currently under consideration with the details to be announced by September 2003. The Equality Commission is an important stakeholder and we intend, as envisaged in the Joint Declaration, that it should be directly involved throughout the process.

Fishing

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when, and for what year, the last annual report of the Foyle Fisheries Commission was published; when the outstanding annual reports will be published; when the outstanding annual reports of the Loughs Agency relating to fisheries will be published; and what has been the reason for the delay in producing these reports.

Ian Pearson: It was normal practice for the Foyle Fisheries Commission to publish the Annual Report of its operations together with its financial statements for the period in question. The last Annual report with Statement of Accounts for the Foyle Fisheries Commission was for the year 1996.
	The Report and Statement of Accounts for the Foyle Fisheries Commission for the periods 1997–99 will be published in July this year.
	During 1997, the Department of Finance and Personnel (NI) introduced new standards for the format and information to be presented in the accounts for Non Departmental Public Bodies, which caused significant technical difficulties for the Foyle Fisheries Commission in its completion of Financial Statements. This in turn resulted in significant delays during audit of the accounts for this period. The accounts and report for this period have since been finalised and are now ready for publication.
	The operational report of the Loughs Agency for 2000 was provided and noted by the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) on 22 June, as required by the North South Co-operation (Implementation Bodies) (NI) Order, 1999. This report will be published later this year when the financial statements for that period have been certified by the Comptroller and Auditor General for Northern Ireland and the Irish Comptroller and Auditor General.
	The reports for 2001 and 2002 will be published upon the completion of the audit of the financial statements for those periods. These financial statements are currently with the Northern Ireland Audit Office who anticipate their completion by this autumn. The Annual Report and Accounts will be submitted to the NSMC and published following completion of the audit.

Gap Funding

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many successful gap funding applications there have been in each constituency in Northern Ireland.

Ian Pearson: The number of successful Gap Funding applications by Parliamentary constituency in Northern Ireland is set out in the following table.
	
		Table: Number of successful gap funding applications by Parliamentary Constituency in Northern Ireland
		
			 Constituency Successful gap funding applications (peace) Successful gap funding applications (BSP) 
		
		
			  
			  
			 Belfast East 32 — 
			 Belfast North 93 2 
			 Belfast South 61 — 
			 Belfast West 83 3 
			 East Antrim 22 — 
			 East Londonderry 19 2 
			 Fermanagh and South Tyrone 29 1 
			 Foyle 72 10 
			 Lagan Valley 17 — 
			 Mid Ulster 28 5 
			 Newry and Armagh 33 1 
			 North Antrim 23 1 
			 North Down 6 — 
			 South Antrim 7 1 
			 South Down 20 — 
			 Strangford 14 1 
			 Upper Bann 22 3 
			 West Tyrone 37 — 
			 Unclassified 13 63 
			 Total 631 93 
		
	
	Note:
	Unclassified successful Gap funding Applications are those that clearly benefited two or more Parliamentary Constituencies, and therefore cannot be classified within any specific Parliamentary Constituency.

Health

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the death rates were from coronary heart disease in each Northern Ireland constituency in each of the last five years.

Ian Pearson: The ischaemic heart disease death rate per 1,000 population is shown in the following table, for each Northern Ireland constituency and year between 1998 and 2002. The number of deaths due to ischaemic heart disease for each constituency and year is also shown. Areas with older populations generally have higher death rates and this will explain some of the differences shown as follows.
	
		Ischaemic heart disease death rate per 1,000 population and number of deaths due to ischaemic heart disease by constituency and year (1998–2002)
		
			  1998 1999 2000 
			 Parliamentary constituency Death rate Deaths Death rate Deaths Death rate Deaths 
		
		
			 Belfast, East 2.7 215 2.6 208 2.6 210 
			 Belfast, North 2.7 243 2.9 261 2.4 210 
			 Belfast, South 2.0 186 2.2 210 1.9 181 
			 Belfast, West 1.8 165 1.6 148 1.8 164 
			 East Antrim 2.3 189 2.0 165 2.1 176 
			 East Londonderry 2.2 193 2.1 187 2.1 181 
			 Fermanagh and South Tyrone 2.3 211 2.5 228 2.3 204 
			 Foyle 1.8 189 1.4 146 1.3 141 
			 Lagan Valley 2.1 208 2.1 209 1.9 195 
			 Mid-Ulster 2.0 171 1.6 140 1.9 167 
			 Newry and Armagh 2.3 228 1.7 171 1.8 182 
			 North Antrim 2.4 236 2.6 259 2.1 212 
			 North Down 2.4 208 2.4 201 2.4 204 
			 South Antrim 1.8 178 1.7 166 1.4 138 
			 South Down 2.0 210 2.0 205 1.4 148 
			 Strangford 2.0 188 2.0 190 1.7 164 
			 Upper Bann 2.1 213 2.3 234 1.8 188 
			 West Tyrone 2.2 187 2.3 201 1.7 146 
			 Unallocated(13) — 36 — 39 — 23 
			 Northern Ireland 2.2 3,654 2.1 3,568 1.9 3,234 
		
	
	
		
			  2001 2002 
			 Parliamentary constituency Death rate Deaths Death rate Deaths 
		
		
			 Belfast, East 2.5 202 2.4 187 
			 Belfast, North 2.1 184 2.4 199 
			 Belfast, South 1.8 173 1.4 131 
			 Belfast, West 1.6 143 1.6 140 
			 East Antrim 1.7 145 1.6 138 
			 East Londonderry 2.0 177 1.6 141 
			  Fermanagh and South Tyrone2.3 210 1.9 177 
			 Foyle 1.4 151 1.2 132 
			 Lagan Valley 1.6 160 1.8 181 
			 Mid-Ulster 1.7 149 1.6 143 
			 Newry and Armagh 1.8 187 1.7 169 
			 North Antrim 2.0 203 1.6 166 
			 North Down 2.1 178 2.0 170 
			 South Antrim 1.3 132 1.6 158 
			 South Down 1.7 180 1.6 172 
			 Strangford 1.7 172 1.6 154 
			 Upper Bann 1.8 187 1.8 183 
			 West Tyrone 2.1 179 2.0 172 
			 Unallocated(13) — 36 — 35 
			 Northern Ireland 1.9 3,148 1.7 2,948 
		
	
	(13) Each year a small number of deaths cannot be allocated to a parliamentary constituency within Northern Ireland—these deaths have been included in the Northern Ireland total.

Hospital Admissions

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many hospital admissions there were on average per week in Northern Ireland during each of the last four quarters.

Angela Smith: The table sets out the average number of in-patients (ordinary admissions and day cases) admitted to hospital per week in the last four quarters.
	
		
			 Quarter Average number of inpatient admissions per week 
		
		
			 1 April 2002–30 June 2002 9,273 
			 1 July 2002–30 September 2002 9,110 
			 1 October 2002–31 December 2002 9,542 
			 1 January 2003–31 March 2003 9,614 
		
	
	Note:
	Data for 2002–03 are provisional and may change.
	Source:
	Hospital Inpatient's System.

Hospital Admissions

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many individuals were admitted to Northern Ireland hospitals in the last year who were not residents of the province.

Angela Smith: In 2002–03, a total of 3,992 patients whose address was outside of Northern Ireland were admitted to hospitals in Northern Ireland (ordinary admissions and day cases). The source of this information is the Hospital In-patient's System. Data for 2002–03 are provisional and may change.

Hospital Admissions

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average cost was of hospital admissions in Northern Ireland in (a) 1982, (b) 1992 and (c) 2002.

Angela Smith: The information requested is provided as follows:
	
		Average cost of hospital admissions(In-patients including day cases) -- £
		
			  Average cost of an admission 
			 Year ended 31 March Actual price Adjusted to2002–03 prices 
		
		
			 1982 630 1,490 
			 1992 918 1,223 
			 2002(14) 1,126 1,159 
		
	
	(14) There may be small definitional differences between the year ended 31 March 2002 and earlier years due to differences in available sources of information.
	Notes:
	1. The figures provided exclude expenditure and activity information in relation to long stay and specialist hospitals.
	2. It should be noted that a straight forward comparison of costs over a 20 year period is difficult, given the substantial changes in the range and nature of procedures undertaken in hospitals. In addition the lengths of stay and therefore costs will vary dramatically within one year, depending on the speciality and the patient's condition.

Housing Adaptations

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he plans to abolish the means test for housing adaptations in families with disabled children.

John Spellar: The review group that was set up to look at the issue has just recently sent its report to me. I will write to the hon. Member for Strangford once I have had the opportunity to consider its recommendations.

Mental Health

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many elderly mentally infirm unit places there are in Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: Information on the number of elderly mentally infirm unit places is not available. However, at 31 March 2003, there were approximately 700 elderly mentally infirm persons in residential homes and approximately 1,000 elderly mentally infirm persons in nursing homes, whose care was funded by Health and Social Services Trusts.

Mental Health

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many individuals aged 18 and younger are receiving (a) antidepressants, (b) antipsychotics and (c) amphetamines in each health trust in Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not available.

MOT Tests

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action he intends to take to address the backlog of MOT appointments at the Driver and Vehicle Testing Agency.

Angela Smith: The principal causes of the current waiting time difficulties have been a significant increase in demand and the temporary closure of test centres for the installation of new test equipment.
	The programme of refurbishment will be completed in September this year. In the meantime, a number of steps are being taken to alleviate the position. These include: continuing efforts to recruit additional staff; increased overtime working; the introduction of extended day working into additional centres to increase capacity; diverting technical staff from other duties to testing; working with the equipment supplier to secure higher levels of productivity; better public information and awareness, so that customers have the option of choosing centres with a lower waiting time; and relocating staff in order to match capacity and demand as closely as possible.

Physiotherapy

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the recruitment of physiotherapists.

Angela Smith: The recruitment of staff, including physiotherapists, is a matter for individual Health and Social Services Trusts taking into account factors such as service needs and available resources. The Department however has a role in ensuring that sufficient suitably qualified staff are available to meet the needs of the service throughout the health and personal social services.
	The Department has looked at ways of improving regional workforce planning mechanisms and in August 2001 a series of comprehensive workforce reviews was launched. These reviews are across the main HPSS professional groups and the physiotherapy staff group is included in this initiative. The first report on the review of the physiotherapy workforce has been completed and its findings indicated that there are currently sufficient physiotherapists in training to meet the needs of the service.
	The position however is being kept under review, particularly in light of probable increasing demand that will result from developments in physiotherapy services

Planning

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many enforcement notices were issued by each of the planning divisions in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years; how many were issued between 1 April and 9 May; how many are still in operation; and what the timescale is for the act of enforcement to be implemented.

Angela Smith: Although statistical records maintained by the Planning Service have historically taken account of enforcement procedures, it is only since 1999 that separate data specifically relating to enforcement action has been recorded. It is not possible to provide a breakdown of enforcement statistics by Division.
	Presented in the table is the total number of enforcement notices issued for each year since 1999. These figures are published in the Agency Annual Report and Accounts for the years 1999–2002.
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1999–2000 82 
			 2000–01 54 
			 2001–02 50 
			 2002–03 40 
			 1 April to 9 May 2003 8 
		
	
	Note:
	The enforcement notices issued since 1 April 2003 remain in effect. Under Article 68(8) of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991, each enforcement notice should specify the period for compliance. The period allowed for compliance depends on the circumstances of each case.

Planning

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what financial resources were allocated to the implementation of planning enforcement cases in each of the planning divisions in each of the last five years; how many officers are employed to undertake enforcement work in each of the planning divisions in Northern Ireland; and how many there were in 1997.

Angela Smith: The Department of the Environment's Planning Service's annual expenditure on salaries for officers employed in enforcement work, during the last five financial years, was:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1998–99 338,100 
			 1999–2000 353,300 
			 2000–01 369,200 
			 2001–02 385,800 
			 2002–03 403,200 
		
	
	There are currently 20 officers devoted to enforcement work. These officers are deployed by Divisional Planning Office as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Belfast Division 3 
			 Ballymena Division 3 
			 Craigavon Division 3 
			 Downpatrick Division 3 
			 Londonderry Division 4 
			 Omagh Division 4 
		
	
	The additional officers in the Londonderry and Omagh Divisions are based in the Coleraine and Enniskillen sub-offices.
	This dedicated staffing complement was put in place in 1998. Prior to this, enforcement work was taken forward as an integral part of development control casework and it is therefore not possible to provide comparison figures for 1997.
	A number of measures to enhance enforcement powers were included in the Planning (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003, to simplify, streamline and strengthen the Department's existing enforcement powers.
	Planning Service is also reviewing the resources dedicated to enforcement as part of the Modernising Planning Processes Implementation Plan, and is seeking substantial additional resources to address enforcement and other priority areas. Views on whether the costs of enforcement action should be recovered from planning fees will also be sought in a consultation paper on planning fees, which is due to be published shortly.

Planning

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his policy is towards third party appeals in relation to planning applications in Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: I am conscious of the potential implications that the introduction of third party appeals would have for the operation of Northern Ireland's planning system and economy. That is why I have commissioned a Regulatory Impact Assessment of the impact that third party appeals would have, if introduced. When complete, I will wish to give that assessment the most careful consideration before making a decision on how to deal with this important issue.

Planning

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what criteria are applied in determining planning applications in areas of townscape character;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to ensure compliance with development guidance notes in relation to planning applications in areas of townscape character;
	(3)  if he will take steps to ensure that planning applications in areas of townscape character are carefully monitored pending the determination of policy on third party appeals.

Angela Smith: The Department of the Environment is obliged by law to have regard to the Development Plan, so far as it is material, and to any other material considerations in determining planning applications. In relation to Areas of Townscape Character, other material considerations includes the Regional Development Strategy, Planning Policy Statements in particular PPS1, PPS6 and PPS7 and advice in the form of supplementary planning guidance.
	All proposals in Areas of Townscape Character are carefully assessed to ensure compliance with published policy and guidance taking account of any other relevant matters. As with all planning applications, proposals in Areas of Townscape Character are processed in an open and transparent manner. This allows an opportunity for the receipt of public representations and involves consultation with the relevant district council and other statutory bodies.
	To afford additional protection for Areas of Townscape Character, I intend later this year to introduce control over demolition within these areas. When the relevant statutory provisions are concerned, I will publish an addendum to Planning Policy Statement 6, which will set out my Department's policy for the control of development in Areas of Townscape Character.

Police HQ, Armagh

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  how extensive the asbestos contamination was at the regional police headquarters in Armagh; when the contamination occurred; and what the cause was of the contamination;
	(2)  what documents and how many case files were contaminated by asbestos at the regional police headquarters in Armagh; what percentage of these papers were destroyed; at what rank this decision was taken; what options were available for copying files; and from what bodies professional advice was sought;
	(3)  how many criminal prosecutions were dropped as a result of asbestos contamination at the regional police headquarters in Armagh; how many civil actions were affected; and what cost was incurred in meeting claims for damages as a result of failing to produce evidence.

Jane Kennedy: I have written to my hon. Friend, a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Police Property (Meetings)

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the policy is on the RUC GC Association and Welfare Associations meeting in police property across Northern Ireland; and if he will ensure that these facilities remain open to them as long as they are required.

Jane Kennedy: This is a matter for the Chief Constable. I understand that he has provided assurances that organisations such as the RUC GC Associations and Welfare Associations will continue to be granted the use of police premises. Any person or persons wishing to gain admission to any police establishment would be required to comply with any policies established by the organisation.

Police Service of Northern Ireland

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  whether there is a right of appeal for serving or former members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland when a request to use convalescent facilities on the mainland is refused by the Benevolent Fund Committee; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether there is a ceiling on the number of times a serving or former member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland can use convalescent homes for respite purposes on the mainland.

Jane Kennedy: Each case made to the Benevolent Fund Committee is considered on its own merits. There is no ceiling on the number of times an officer or retired officer can use the benevolent fund facilities. However, all instances where a request is made for a third visit are referred to the Management Committee for approval. An applicant who has had their request refused can ask to have their case reviewed and may submit additional information or material to be considered as part of that review.

Radiographers

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many radiographers are employed in full-time posts in the NHS in Northern Ireland; how many vacancies exist; and what estimate he has made of how many will be required in total in 2006.

Angela Smith: The information is as follows:
	(a) A breakdown of radiographers as at 31 March 2003 by employment status is shown in the following table:
	
		Radiographers as at 31 March 2003 by employment status(15)
		
			 Employment status Headcount WTE(16) 
		
		
			 Full-time 399 399.0 
			 Part-time 159 89.50 
			 Total 558 488.5 
		
	
	(15) Bank staff who cover for staffing shortfalls and fluctuating workloads in order to maintain service delivery have been removed from these figures.
	(16) Whole-time equivalent.
	(b) As at 30 September 2002 there were Radiography vacancies amounting to a whole-time equivalent of 26.5. Radiography vacancies detailed by trust are given in the following table:
	
		Radiography vacancies detailed by trust as at 30 September 2002
		
			 Health and Social Services (HSS) Trust WTE(17) 
		
		
			 Sperrin Lakeland HSS Trust 1.0 
			 United Hospitals Group HSS Trust 4.0 
			 Altnagelvin Group HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Royal Group of Hospitals HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Craigavon Area Hospital Group HSS Trust 6.5 
			 Green Park Healthcare HSS Trust 4.0 
			 Down and Lisburn HSS Trust 6.0 
			 Belfast City Hospital HSS Trust 2.0 
			 Ulster Community and Hospitals Group HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Total 26.5 
		
	
	(17) Whole-time equivalent
	(c) The total required number of Radiographers in 2006 equates to 738 headcount when supply is profiled against the Demand Levels 1 and 2, as identified within the Comprehensive Review of the Radiography Workforce, April 2002.

Radiology

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many vacancies there are in Northern Ireland for (a) radiologists and (b) radiographers.

Angela Smith: The information is as follows:
	(a) As at 30 September there were Consultant Radiologists' vacancies amounting to a whole-time equivalent of 8.0. Consultant Radiologists' vacancies detailed by Trust are given in the following table. The number of staff in post at this same date was 73 (68.25 WTE).
	
		Consultant radiologists' vacancies detailed by trustas at 30 September 2002
		
			 Health and Social Services (HSS) Trust WTE(18) 
		
		
			 Sperrin Lakeland HSS Trust 2.0 
			 United Hospitals Group HSS Trust 3.0 
			 Belfast City Hospitals HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Ulster Community and Hospitals HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Craigavon Area Hospital Group HSS Trust 1.0 
		
	
	(18) Whole-time equivalent
	As at 30 September 2002 there were Radiography vacancies amounting to a whole-time equivalent of 26.5. Radiography vacancies detailed by trust are given in the following table. The number of staff in post at this same date was 566 (496.3 WTE).
	
		Radiography vacancies detailed by trust as at 30 September 2002
		
			 Health and Social Services (HSS) Trust WTE(19) 
		
		
			 Sperrin Lakeland HSS Trust 1.0 
			 United Hospitals Group HSS Trust 4.0 
			 Altnagelvin Group HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Royal Group of Hospitals HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Craigavon Area Hospital Group HSS Trust 6.5 
			 Green Park Healthcare HSS Trust 4.0 
			 Down and Lisburn HSS Trust 6.0 
			 Belfast City Hospital HSS Trust 2.0 
			 Ulster Community and Hospitals Group HSS Trust 1.0 
			 Total 26.5 
		
	
	(19) Whole-time equivalent

Regional Cancer Centre

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on recruitment of staff for Northern Ireland's new regional Cancer Centre.

Angela Smith: The Belfast City Hospital Trust developed a workforce plan for the new Cancer Centre as part of the submission of the Outline Business Case. The Trust is keeping the plan under review. The Regional Medical Services Consortium is currently considering a substantial additional revenue investment of approx £1.6 million per annum to enable a phased build-up in staff numbers towards the opening of the new Centre.

Respite Care

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many respite care beds there are in each health board area in the Province for (a) young adults older than 18 and (b) those aged 18 and younger.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Road Tax

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action has been taken to reduce the number of vehicles being driven on Northern Ireland's roads without road tax; and how many prosecutions have resulted in the past 12 months as a result of enforcement action.

Angela Smith: A range of measures is in place to tackle Vehicle Excise Duty (road tax) evasion in Northern Ireland, including ongoing detection by the police and traffic wardens, wheel clamping; Automated Number Plate Reading cameras; Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN); and special joint exercises by DVLNI, PSNI and Her Majesty's Customs and Excise.
	The most recent period for which enforcement information is available is the year from 1 June 2002 to 31 May 2003. In that year enforcement action was taken against 15,171 offenders. 13,281 settled out of court and 1,890 were prosecuted in court.

Roadworks

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which contractors working for the Roads Service had their contracts terminated in each year since 1999; and what the reasons were in each case.

Angela Smith: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to you in response to your question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Roadworks

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total length broken down by classification of road is in each council area in Northern Ireland.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Roadworks

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost was of repairing public (a) roads and (b) footpaths in Northern Ireland following work carried out by (i) electricity and (ii) gas companies in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to you in response to your question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many surgical operations were performed in 2002 at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.

Angela Smith: There were 4,260 surgical operations performed in the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children during 2002–03.

Schools

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many temporary classrooms there were in each Education and Library Board area in each of the last three years.

Jane Kennedy: The number of temporary classrooms in controlled schools 1 in each Education and Library Board area in each of the last three years is as follows:
	
		
			 Education and Library Board 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Belfast 119 119 103 
			 Western 172 177 172 
			 North-Eastern 325 343 358 
			 South-Eastern 509 452 394 
			 Southern 262 252 240 
		
	
	1 Information on temporary classrooms in other sectors is not currently available. However, the Department of Education will be carrying out a survey of maintained, voluntary grammar and grant maintained integrated schools before the end of the financial year to ascertain the exact number of temporary classrooms in these sectors. This information will be supplied to you when the results of the survey are available.
	The increased investment in new schools, together with a £25 million programme specifically to remove temporary classrooms, spanning the financial years 2002–03 to 2005–06, should result in a substantial reduction in these classrooms over the next 3 years.

Schools

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many schools requiring (a) high priority maintenance work and (b) major works there were in each Education and Library Board area in each of the last three years.

Jane Kennedy: The information requested is as follows:
	
		(a) Number of schools requiring high priority maintenance work(20)
		
			 Education and Library Board Area 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Belfast 156 155 163 
			 Western 238 215 188 
			 North-Eastern 139 157 127 
			 South-Eastern 222 207 184 
			 Southern 240 262 234 
		
	
	(20) Figures cover controlled, maintained and Irish-medium schools. Maintenance work in voluntary grammar grant maintained integrated schools is met by the schools themselves from their annual LMS budgets. Data is held centrally by the Department on the extent of the maintenance requirements in these schools.
	
		(b) Number of schools requiring major works(22)
		
			 Education and Library Board Area 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Belfast 16 15 28 
			 Western 22 20 29 
			 North-Eastern 26 28 37 
			 South-Eastern 14 13 14 
			 Southern 29 32 30 
		
	
	(21) Figures cover all schools included in the Department's Schools' Capital Priorities list as published on its website.

Senior Citizens (Concessionary Travel)

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been issued with senior citizen smart passes for free travel on public transport, broken down by post code area.

John Spellar: Translink advise that the information is not readily available in exactly the form requested. However, the table shows the total number of Smartpasses in issue by Northern Ireland postcode area as at 16 July 2003. Over 160,000 of the 164,596 Smartpasses in circulation are Senior Smartpasses, the remainder being made up of Smartpasses for those registered blind and the war disabled. Translink do not have the postcodes for 1,080 pass holders.
	
		
			 Postcode Count 
		
		
			 BT1 41 
			 BT2 76 
			 BT3 6 
			 BT4 3,511 
			 BT5 5,774 
			 BT6 4,476 
			 BT7 1,358 
			 BT8 3,078 
			 BT9 2,759 
			 BT10 1,520 
			 BT11 3,453 
			 BT12 2,635 
			 BT13 3,313 
			 BT14 3,667 
			 BT15 3,550 
			 BT16 1,936 
			 BT17 2,170 
			 BT18 1,815 
			 BT19 4,023 
			 BT20 4,210 
			 BT21 1,115 
			 BT22 1,795 
			 BT23 4,879 
			 BT24 1,292 
			 BT25 986 
			 BT26 877 
			 BT27 2,650 
			 BT28 3,451 
			 BT29 624 
			 BT30 2,627 
			 BT31 524 
			 BT32 2,001 
			 BT33 1,292 
			 BT34 4,420 
			 BT35 2,994 
			 BT36 4,751 
			 BT37 3,421 
			 BT38 4,187 
			 BT39 2,112 
			 BT40 3,138 
			 BT41 2,901 
			 BT42 3,322 
			 BT43 2,196 
			 BT44 1,528 
			 BT45 2,078 
			 BT46 591 
			 BT47 4,438 
			 BT48 3,827 
			 BT49 1,465 
			 BT51 2,221 
			 BT52 1,671 
			 BT53 1,945 
			 BT54 629 
			 BT55 1,097 
			 BT56 863 
			 BT57 462 
			 BT60 2,098 
			 BT61 1,345 
			 BT62 2,933 
			 BT63 1,970 
			 BT64 45 
			 BT65 371 
			 BT66 3,064 
			 BT67 1,575 
			 BT68 70 
			 BT69 187 
			 BT70 1,250 
			 BT71 2,688 
			 BT74 1,568 
			 BT75 292 
			 BT76 128 
			 BT77 80 
			 BT78 2,044 
			 BT79 1,572 
			 BT80 1,396 
			 BT81 527 
			 BT82 1,979 
			 BT84 6 
			 BT92 929 
			 BT93 692 
			 BT94 963 
			 BT95 1 
			 BT96 1 
			 BT98 1 
			 No postcode available 1,080 
			 Total 164,596

Strategic Investment Body

Seamus Mallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people are on the Board of the Strategic Investment Body; and how many are women.

Paul Murphy: The Strategic Investment Board has five directors, none of whom is a woman.

Teachers

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on teacher recruitment in Northern Ireland.

Jane Kennedy: The level of intakes to teacher education courses is determined annually by the Department of Education, with the aim of maintaining a reasonable match between the numbers being trained and the projected numbers of teaching vacancies. Currently these courses are oversubscribed with around five applications for each available place.
	Research has been commissioned by the Department to test the proposition that there is or will be a shortfall in the recruitment of teachers in any subject area in post-primary schools in Northern Ireland. The research findings are expected in October.

Teachers

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many teaching vacancies there are in North Belfast in (a) the primary and (b) the secondary sector.

Jane Kennedy: The number of vacancies, as indicated by the employing authorities in all school sectors in the North Belfast area at the beginning of the new school year, is seven in the primary sector and nine in the secondary sector as set out in the following.
	Responses from employing authorities and North Belfast voluntary grammar and integrated schools on teaching vacancies as they apply at the beginning of the new school year 2003–04.
	1. Belfast Education and Library Board
	Currently the Board is not aware of any vacancies in the primary or secondary controlled sectors in North Belfast.
	2. Council for Catholic Maintained Schools
	Seven vacancies and nine secondary vacancies are expected to be filled in the near future. 3. Integrated Primary Schools
	Hazlewood Integrated Primary School, 242 Whitewell Road—no teaching vacancies.
	4. Voluntary Grammar and Integrated Secondary Schools
	Belfast Royal Academy—no teaching vacancies.
	Dominician College, 38 Fort William Park—no teaching vacancies.
	Hazelwood Integrated College, 70 Whitewell Road—no teaching vacancies.
	St. Malachy's College, 36 Antrim Road—no teaching vacancies.

Transport

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the quality bus corridor on the Newtownards Roads is likely to open.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Transport

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the plans to upgrade the Westlink.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Transport

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the status is of each road scheme in the Road Service Major Works preparation.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Transport Infrastructure

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been invested in improving the (a) roads and (b) transport infrastructure in (i) North Belfast and (ii) Northern Ireland in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: I have asked the Chief Executive of Roads Service to write to you in response to your question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Unadopted Main Sewers

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many households in East Belfast have unadopted main sewers.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Vehicle Licensing

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport about extending to Northern Ireland measures to improve vehicle licensing in line with those announced by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport in the written ministerial statement of 22 May 2003, Official Report, columns 45–46WS.

Angela Smith: I can confirm that the proposals announced by the Minister for Transport will apply in Northern Ireland. My officials in Driver and Vehicle Licensing Northern Ireland are working with their counterparts in DVLA and DfT on the operational details.

Waiting Times/Lists

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many patients in the Province are waiting for (a) CT scans, (b) MRI scans and (c) X-rays; and what the longest time is that a patient has had to wait for each of these appointments.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not routinely collected centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Water and Sewerage

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been invested in improving the (a) water and (b) sewerage infrastructure in North Belfast in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Water Bill

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs Ministers to extend the Water Bill to Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: I have had no discussions with Defra Ministers about extending the Water Bill to Northern Ireland. The Water Bill applies only to England and Wales and, as such, its proposed measures relate largely to the privatised water industry which does not reflect the arrangements currently in place in Northern Ireland. However, my officials have been monitoring the progress of the Bill through its various stages to consider what, if any, implications there are for future policy development in Northern Ireland.

Water Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) households and (b) public sector offices in Northern Ireland have been fitted with hippo bags; and if he will make a statement on the estimated savings made by their introduction.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Water Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the Water Service met its targets in respect of domestic water efficiency in (a) 2001, (b) 2002 and (c) since January.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Water Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he last met the EAGA Partnership to discuss water efficiency proposals; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Water Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what comparative studies have been undertaken by the Water Service in Northern Ireland with water authorities in (a) England, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales regarding water efficiency by (i) domestic premises, (ii) small businesses and (iii) public sector offices; and if he will make a statement on the results.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Water Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what evaluation has been made by the Water Service regarding the distribution of hippo bags in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the results.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Water Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on his plans to improve water efficiency in (a) low income households, (b) small businesses and (c) public sector offices.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of Water Service to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

HEALTH

Abortions

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans he has to reduce the number of abortions in the London borough of Havering;
	(2)  how many abortions were performed in the London borough of Havering in each year from 1997 to 2002.

John Hutton: The Government are taking a number of steps through the National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV and the Teenage Pregnancy Strategy to help reduce the number of abortions. We are also working to improve access to contraceptive services and the range of methods of contraception that are available and will be making £1 million available this year to support this. We are also working with the Department for Education and Skills to improve sex and relationships education.
	The number of abortions performed on residents of Havering local authority is shown in the table. The data are not available by local authority prior to 1995 and have therefore been shown by health authority, district health authority, and health district which includes data for residents of neighbouring local authority areas. Data for 2002 will be available from autumn 2003.
	
		Numbers of abortions to residents of Havering local authority, 1995–2001(22),(23)
		
			 Year Number 
		
		
			 2001 862 
			 2000 828 
			 1999 838 
			 1998 815 
			 1997 757 
			 1996 737 
			 1995 691 
			 1994 (24)1,288 
			 1993 (24)1,350 
			 1992 (25)1,557 
			 1991 (25)1,703 
			 1990 (25)1,777 
			 1989 (25)1,839 
			 1988 (25)1,750 
			 1987 (25)1,618 
			 1986 (25)1,435 
			 1985 (25)1,477 
			 1984 (25)1,435 
			 1983 (25)1,308 
			 1982 (26)769 
			 1981 (26)708 
			 1980 (24)1,220 
			 1979 (24)1,245 
			 1978 (24)1,029 
			 1977 (24)989 
			 1976 (24)933 
		
	
	(22) Prior to 1995 records were allocated by postcode to ward and then stored by health authority or district health authority. Data for 2002 will be available from autumn 2003.
	(23) The information provided for 1976–94 is for areas that include abortions performed on residents of Havering local authority.
	(24) Barking, Havering and Brentwood district health authority.
	(25) Barking and Havering health authority.
	(26) Havering health district.

Accident and Emergency Treatment

Dr. Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines he has issued on the target for no patient to be waiting for more than four hours in accident and emergency, with special reference to patients with a clinical need to remain for over four hours.

Rosie Winterton: The NHS Plan established the target that by December 2004 accident and emergency (A&E) patients should wait no more than four hours between arrival and discharge, admission to hospital, or transfer to another facility.
	There are exceptional circumstances in which an A&E department remains the safest clinical environment for a patient even though four hours have elapsed. The Department of Health has been engaged in constructive discussions with the British Association for A&E Medicine, the Faculty of A&E Medicine and the Royal College of Nursing about how these cases should be defined and monitored.
	The product of these discussions is a paper that was published for wider consultation on 11 September. The paper is available on the Department's website, at www.doh.gov.uk/emergencycare/clinical-exceptions. htm. The consultation period runs until 31 October 2003. After consultation we will publish the final version of the paper and develop a process for excluding these patients from the monitoring of NHS trusts' performance against the A&E target.

Acute Hospitals (Performance)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to support NHS managers in improving performance following the recent Audit Commission reports into acute hospitals.

John Hutton: The Government have a range of measures in place to support national health service managers in improving performance:
	we have invested significant additional resources in the five-year period 2003–04 to 2007–08. Over this period the average real terms increase will be 7.4 per cent. a year over and above inflation;
	we have set up the NHS Modernisation Agency to support NHS organisations and their front-line staff to improve services for patients; and
	we have put in place a range of recruitment and retention initiatives.
	For the first time, health communities have developed comprehensive local programmes with action across health partnerships to improve health, tackle inequalities and modernise NHS. Alongside the significant increase in funding, these will help the NHS and social services plan for the future with confidence.
	Further details of the Government's support to the NHS in improving performance are detailed in my letter to the hon. Member, a copy of which has been placed in the Library.

Advocacy Scheme

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how the funding for mental health advocacy announced in the White Paper 'Valuing People' has been spent; and how much underspend there is from this fund (a) in England and (b) in each region.
	(2)  how many volunteer advocates have joined the mental health advocacy scheme announced in the White Paper 'Valuing People' (a) in England and (b) in each region.
	(3)  what progress has been made towards the target set out in the White Paper 'Valuing People' for one citizen advocacy group in each local authority area; and which local authorities do not yet have a citizen advocacy group.

Stephen Ladyman: The importance of advocacy for people with learning disabilities is a theme running throughout the White Paper "Valuing People: A New Strategy for Learning Disability for the 21st Century" (Cm 5086) published in March 2001 which sets out our proposals for improving services for people with learning disabilities, their families and carers.
	"Valuing People" announced the creation of two new funds, the Implementation Support Fund and the Learning Disability Development Fund, to support key aspects of its proposals. Two organisations, Values Into Action (VIA) and the British Institute of Learning Disabilities (BILD), are distributing money from the Implementation Support Fund to support the development and expansion of self- and citizen advocacy respectively. By the end of the third year of the funding programme in March 2004, £3 million will have been distributed to advocacy organisations. That figure includes the additional £140,000 which my hon. Friend, the Member for Redditch, announced in February 2002 was being made available from April that year following representations from the Learning Disability Task Force and self advocates. There has been no underspend in the first two years, and funding for the third year has already been allocated.
	Our most recent information is that 449 volunteers have been recruited to citizen advocacy schemes; as a result 394 people with learning disabilities now have advocates who otherwise would not.
	Information on the geographical distribution of citizen advocacy schemes is not available in the form requested, as many schemes cover more than one local authority area. In 2002–03, the first full year of the funding programme, advocacy schemes in twenty four new geographical areas received support.
	The Government's report on learning disability, "Making Change Happen" (HC514), published in April 2003, announced that the Implementation Support Fund would continue until March 2006 and that the Learning Disability Task Force would be consulted on its use.
	The draft Mental Health Bill published for consultation in June 2002 included the proposal for a statutory duty on the Secretary of State to provide for specialist mental health advocates to be available for every patient treated under the formal powers of the Bill and their nominated person.
	At the request of the Department of Health, Durham University has undertaken a study of current mental health advocacy services to assist the Department in developing this new specialist advocacy service. A separate report on mental health advocacy was also published for consultation in June 2002. It contained a number of recommendations for good practice. The responses from both consultation exercises are being carefully evaluated and will be taken into account in developing plans for implementing the new specialist service, including the funding arrangements.

Autism

John Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will implement the recommendations of the Charter for Persons with Autism adopted as a written declaration by the European Parliament on 9 May 1996.

Stephen Ladyman: The rights of all citizens of the United Kingdom, including those who have autism, are set out in the Human Rights Act 1998. We are making sure that human rights principles are kept at the heart of services and policies, in particular through national standards, performance assessment and quality management and in taking forward, for example, the social services modernisation agenda and the implementation of the NHS Plan. We will continue to put human rights at the heart of health and social care policy and the delivery of services for everyone, including people with autism.

Brent and Harrow Health Authority

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS dentists there are in the Brent and Harrow Health Authority area; what steps he is taking to increase the number of NHS dentists in the Brent and Harrow Health Authority area; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Brent and Harrow Health Authority dissolved on 1 April 2002 and North West London Strategic Health Authority is now the local headquarters of the national health service. However the latest available figures show that there were 221 general dental services dentists whose main work was in Brent and Harrow HA at 30 September 2002.
	The proposals in the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill, currently before Parliament, will underpin a modernised high-quality primary dental service provided through contracts between primary care trusts and dental practices properly integrated with the rest of the NHS.
	North West London SHA will ensure that as new primary care centres are developed locally, dentistry will be part of the consideration of which services can be brought together for the convenience of patients.

Brent and Harrow Health Authority

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the prescribing budget was for the Brent and Harrow Health Authority for the financial years (a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02 and (c) 2002–03; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The information requested is not held centrally. Information from North West London Strategic Health Authority is shown in the following tables. Brent and Harrow Health Authority was dissolved on 1 April 2002 and Brent Primary Care Trust and Harrow PCT now have responsibility for setting prescribing budgets in Brent and Harrow respectively.
	
		Prescribing budget for Brent and Harrow Health Authority -- £000
		
			  Actual Budget 
		
		
			 2000–01 45,702 45,344 
			 2001–02 49,960 49,538 
		
	
	
		Combined prescribing budget for Brent PCT and Harrow PCT -- £000
		
			  Actual Budget 
		
		
			 2002–03 58,722 56,055 
		
	
	Each year the Department of Health issues guidance to the national health service containing advice about factors that should be taken into account in setting prescribing budgets. However it is for individual primary care trusts to set their prescribing budgets.

Bureaucracy

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many bureaucracy-busting champions have been appointed as part of the Government's anti-bureaucracy drive; and where they are located.

John Hutton: No new appointments have been made as a result of this initiative. Each strategic health authority has identified an existing senior member of staff who will be responsible for ensuring that action is taken locally to reduce the burden placed on front-line national health service staff. This will complement the action already being taken by the Department.

Child Protection

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the NHS trusts which have not yet appointed a designated nurse for child protection.

Stephen Ladyman: According 10 the child protection sell-audit returns submitted to the Commission for Health improvement, by the end of May 2003, the following National Health Service trusts, including primary care trusts, acute trusts, and mental health trusts, did not have a named nurse in post when they made their return.
	Tendring Primary Care Trust
	Blackwater Valley and Hart Primary Care Trust
	Colchester Primary Care Trust
	Dudley South Primary Care Trust
	Dudley Bencon and Castle Primary Care trust
	Knowsley Primary Care Trust
	Cheimslord Primary Care Trust
	Waveney Primary Care Trust
	Brent Primary Care Trust
	Witham, Bramiree and Halstead Care NHS Trust
	Cardiothoracic Centre Liverpool NHS Trust (The)
	Walton Centre 1or Neurology & Neurosurgery NHS Trust
	East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
	Rotherham General Hospitals NHS Trust
	West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust
	Whittington Hospital NHS Trust
	Five Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust
	Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnerships NHS Trust
	Calderstones NHS Trust
	Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
	East London and The City Mental Health NHS Trust
	Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Trust
	North Cumbria Mental Health and Learning Disabilities NHS Trust
	North East London Mental Health NHS Trust
	Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust
	Worcestershire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
	However, 13 of these 26 trusts noted in their return that they were in the process of recruiting a named nurse, or that recruitment would start shortly, and a further four said that they had made alternative arrangements such as access to specialist advice Irom another trust or organisation, a shared team across the whole county, or a combined designated/named nurse post.
	The following primary care trusts did not have a designated nurse in post at the time that they made their return:
	Hensmere Primary Care Trust
	West Cumbria Primary Care Trust
	Rugby Primary Care Trust
	Wafiord and Three Rivers Primary Care Trust
	Tower Hamlets Primary Care Trust
	Redbridge Primary Care Trust
	However, three of these trusts noted in their return that they were in the process of recruiting a designated nurse, and another noted that it had made alternative arrangements for staff to access specialist advice.

Community Health Councils

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff, previously employed by the community health councils, have left their jobs in the last six months.

Rosie Winterton: Figures on Community Health Council (CHC) staff leavers, which have been available since February 2003 when clearing houses were introduced, indicate that to end of June 2003, 100 CHC staff have left their jobs.

Community Health Councils

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he estimates the last community health council will cease to function.

Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made by my hon. Friend, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Mr. Lammy) on Wednesday 4 June 2003, Official Report, columns 22–23WS. It is still our intention to abolish community health councils on 1 December 2003.

Community Health Councils

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the staffing levels of community health councils; and what estimate he has made of their likely staff levels on 1 November.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	The Department is working closely with the employing authorities of community health council (CHC) staff and is regularly monitoring the staffing level of CHCs in the run up to the abolition date of 1 December. It is estimated that on 1 November there will be approximately 380 CHC staff.

Community Health Councils

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements are being put in place to ensure that those community health councils which have to move from their premises prior to 1 December remain fully operational.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	Each community health council (CHC) has an exit strategy. In the case of those CHCs who have to move premises prior to 1 December the CHC lead will consult and discuss fully with the chair, members and staff the arrangements that will be in place for the operation of that CHC.

Dental Work

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are in place to ensure that unnecessary dental work is not carried out on patients by dentists for profit.

Rosie Winterton: Dentists providing general dental services under the national health service are remunerated through fees set out in the Statement of Dental Remuneration. The fees are uprated annually in the light of recommendations from the Doctors and Dentists Remuneration Body. For treatments not listed on the Statement of Dental Remuneration and for courses of treatment where total gross lees are above a specified limit set out in regulations dentists are required to obtain prior approval from the Dental Practice Board.
	The board continuously monitors treatments provided under the General Dental Service (GDS) to identify outlying prescribing patterns. The dental reference service of the Dental Practice Board undertakes random patient examinations of proposed treatment plans and completed treatments provided under the GDS to ensure that these meet patients clinical needs and are provided to appropriate standards. When providing general dental services a dentist's terms of service require that he or she "shall not provide care and treatment in excess of that which is necessary to secure and maintain oral health". A breach of these terms of service can result in a financial withholding.
	Under the provisions of the Health and Social Care Bill currently before Parliament, Primary Care Trusts will commission dental services from April 2005 and will be given the resources to do so. Dentists who contract with a PCT will have a secure income in return for making a longer-term commitment to the NHS.
	In response to the Office of Fair Trading report on private dentistry the Government has published an action plan. This is available at www.dti.gov.uk/topics2/dentists.htm. The plan commits the Government to support the development of evidence based clinical care pathways in the NHS to aid dental professionals in improving clinical and cost effective treatment planning of appropriate patient care. The Department of Health will explore with the General Dental Council how clinical pathways can inform its 'Maintaining Standards' guidance and thus be extended to private dentistry.

Diabetes

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures the Department has taken to reduce the number of people with diabetes.

Rosie Winterton: Some risk factors for developing diabetes, such as family history, increasing age or ethnic origin cannot be modified. However it is possible to reduce other risk factors, such as being overweight, having an adverse distribution of body weight or being physically inactive. The Government have a range of actions under way to tackle these risk factors.
	Two new initiatives will be key in fostering healthier lifestyles. The Department of Health is leading on the development of a cross-government food and health action plan. The Plan will pull together all the issues that influence what we eat and will address food production, manufacture and preparation, access to healthier food choices and providing information for consumers about healthy eating and nutrition. This is complemented by wide ranging action to increase mass participation in physical activity and sport, which will be progressed by a cross-government activity co-ordination team, jointly led by the Department of Health and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.

Diabetes

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had diabetes in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) Tyne and Wear and (d) the UK (a) in 1980, (b) in 1990, (c) in 2000 and (d) on the latest date for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: The information is not available in the form requested. However, based on information from the Health Survey for England, the following figures may be estimated.
	
		
			  Number of people with diabetes in the United Kingdom 
		
		
			 1994 1,378,707 
			 1998 1,684,111

Dialysis Treatment

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are receiving dialysis treatment in (a) Crosby, (b) the North West of England and (c) England.

Rosie Winterton: The latest figures are from the 1998 Renal Survey commissioned by the Department of Health. This shows there were 13,405 patients in England receiving dialysis in 1998 of these 1,586 were being treated in the North West. Equivalent figures for the Crosby area are not available from this source.

Drug Addiction

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to increase the training available to GPs in the treatment of drug dependency.

John Hutton: The Government do not specify the content of the General Practitioner training curriculum. This is the job of the Joint Committee on Postgraduate Training for General Practice (JCPTGP), which is the competent authority for general practice training in the United Kingdom. The JCPTGP is an independent professional body, and it is required by section 9(3) of the Vocational Training Regulations 1997 to determine and publish the curriculum to be followed by a GP registrar (for example a trainee GP).
	The Regulations do specify seven competencies which must be tested, and which the curriculum must therefore teach:
	factual medical knowledge sufficient to enable the doctor to perform the duties of a GP;
	the ability to apply factual medical knowledge to the management of problems presented by patients in general practice;
	effective communication, both orally and in writing:
	the ability to consult satisfactorily with general practice patients;
	the ability to review and critically analyse the practitioner's own working practices and to manage any necessary changes appropriately;
	clinical skills; and
	the ability to synthesise all the above competencies and apply them appropriately in a general practice setting.
	GPs are expected therefore to be trained in the skills needed to deal with all their patients.

Failing Hospitals

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which organisations are included on the Department's list of possible franchisees for the management of failing hospitals; and which organisations have been awarded franchises for running failing hospitals.

John Hutton: holding answer 15 September 2003
	The National Health Service Franchising Register of Expertise was published in December 2002. All current three star NHS organisations are on the register along with Trent strategic health authority and eight private sector organisations who are:
	BMI Healthcare, BUPA Hospitals Ltd., Capio Healthcare UK Ltd., Hospitalia activHealth gmbh, Interhealth Canada Ltd., Quo Health, Secta Group Ltd. and Serco Health.
	Prior 10 December 2002, six NHS trusts were franchised as a result of their performance in 2000–01, and recruited new chief executives who were already working in the NHS.
	Good Hope Hospital NHS Trust was given a zero star rating for their performance in 2001–02. Following a rigorous competitive tender, Secta won the franchise to run the trust. The new chief executive started on 1 September 2003.

Falls

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of admissions to care homes of people over the age of (a) 50 years and (b) 65 years in each of the last five years for which figures are available were as a result of a fall.

Stephen Ladyman: Information on the reason for admission to care homes is not collected centrally.
	The number of admissions to care homes supported wholly or in part by local authorities is provided in the table for the years 1997–98 to 2001–02.
	
		Number of admissions to care homes 1997–98 to 2001–02
		
			  All ages 18–64 65+ 
		
		
			 1997–98 402,025 133,000 269,025 
			 1998–99 403,110 133,555 269,555 
			 1999–2000 397,905 135,765 262,140 
			 2000–01 367,350 130,075 237,275 
			 2001–02 374,925 133,140 241,785 
		
	
	Note
	Data includes permanent and temporary admissions.
	Source:SR1, Table S2

Fertility Treatment (Havering)

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many individuals resident in the London borough of Havering are on a waiting list for fertility treatment.

John Hutton: This information is not collected centrally. Information from the North East London Strategic Health Authority is that there are currently 30 Havering residents waiting for national health service funded in-vitro fertilisation treatment at Bart's and the London NHS Trust. This does not include those patients that are funding their treatment privately either at a NHS trust or through a private clinic.

GP Lists

Dr. Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 1 September 2003, Official Report, column 936W, on GP lists, what the average list size was in each year since 1992.

John Hutton: Data on the number of general practitioners and patients are published annually. The latest edition, Statistics for General Medical Practitioners in England: 1992–2002, is available at http://www.doh.gov.uk/public/sb0303.pdf
	The table shows the average GP list size from 1992–2002.
	The average list size continues to fall and is 4 per cent. lower in 2002 than it was in 1992.
	
		Unrestricted Principals and Equivalents (UPEs)1 average list size 1992–2002 -- EnglandNumbers (headcount)
		
			  UPEs Average list size 
		
		
			  
			  
			 1992 25,968 1,922 
			 1993 26,280 1,902 
			 1994 26,567 1,900 
			 1995 26702 1,887 
			 1996 26,855 1,885 
			 1997 27,099 1,878 
			 1998 27,392 1,866 
			 1999 27,591 1,845 
			 2000 27,704 1,853 
			 2001 27,843 1,841 
			 2002 28,031 1,838 
		
	
	(27) UPEs include GMS Unrestricted Principals, PMS Contracted GPs and PMS Salaried GPs.
	Note:
	Data as at 1 October 1992–99 and 30 September 2000–02.
	Source:
	Department of Health General and Personal Medical Services Statistics

GP Recruitment

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GPs have been recruited through the (a) GP Returner scheme and (b) Golden Hello scheme; and how many GPs have delayed their retirement through the Delayed Retirement scheme.

John Hutton: The flexible careers scheme has received 198 applications from doctors wishing to return to general practice. 59 of these are already back in general practice and a further 139 are being processed.
	Application forms received by the Department indicate that over 2,900 general practitioners have received the golden hello payment.
	No information is held centrally on those doctors who delay their retirement.

Health Organisations (Romford)

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with health organisations in Romford during the past 12 months.

John Hutton: I met with the North East London Strategic Health Authority on 5 February 2003.

Histopathology

Nigel Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on assisting NHS trusts to recruit histopathology consultants.

John Hutton: The Department ot Health has a number of national initiatives in place to assist National Health Service trusts to recruit consultants, including histopathologists.
	Under the Department International Fellowship programme, twenty Histopathologists have been recruited and accepted others of employment from NHS trusts. A further nine have been recruited under the global scheme.
	In addition, we are taking forward a programme of work to address key issues of concern to the medical profession as part of the Improving Working Lives initiative. The Flexible Careers Scheme, which is partially centrally funded, allows consultants to strike a better balance between work and other aspects of their life outside work. The scheme enables consultants to work flexibly such as working round the school holidays and job-sharing.

Hospital Patients (Homeless People)

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients whose address was listed as no fixed abode were admitted to NHS hospitals between January and June.

John Hutton: Data are not yet available for January to June, 2002 or 2003. Information shown in the table is for January to June 2001. Due to the nature of homelessness, it may not always be possible to accurately record information. The figures quoted in the response are likely to significantly undercount the 'true' values. This is because in many cases people of no fixed abode may be admitted from temporary accommodation such as a hostel or be sleeping at a friend's home and are coded accordingly.
	
		Finished Admissions into NHS hospitals where place of residence is listed as no fixed abode
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 January 2001 to June 2001 3,267 
		
	
	Notes:
	Data in this table are ungrossed
	Data exclude all healthy newborn babies.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health

Hospital Trust Deficits

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the underlying deficit was in 2002–03 of each of the hospital trusts which he has authorised to proceed with application for foundation status.

John Hutton: Audited financial information in respect of the 2002–03 year for all national health service trusts is published in their individual annual accounts. This information will not be available centrally until the end of October 2003.

Hospital Waiting Lists/Times

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to cut waiting lists in the London borough of Havering.

John Hutton: The national health service is working to reduce waiting times so that by the end of March 2004, the maximum waiting time for in-patient treatment will be cut to nine months and the maximum waiting time for an out-patient appointment will be cut to 17 weeks.

Hospital Waiting Lists/Times

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) cancer, (b) heart disease, (c) hip replacement and (d) liver complaint patients resident in the London borough of Havering are on a waiting list for treatment.

John Hutton: The information requested is not collected in the requested format.

Hospital Wards

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many mixed-sex wards have been divided into single-sex bays at (a) Darent Valley Hospital, Dartford and (b) West Middlesex Hospital, London since 1 January 2002; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The information is not available in the format requested. Ward level data are not collected centrally.
	The Department of Health set three objectives to support the elimination of mixed-sex accommodation with a deadline of December 2002, designed to deliver separate sleeping areas, separate toilet and washing facilities and safe facilities for the mentally ill. Compliance is measured at trust level, and both Dartford and Gravesham National Health Service Trust and West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust are meeting these objectives.

Infection Transmission

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are being taken to minimise the risk of transmission of infection via ambulances.

Rosie Winterton: In 2000, the Department of Health issued advice on the management and control of hospital infection (Health Service Circular 2000/02). All national health service trusts, including ambulance trusts were required to take action to:
	strengthen prevention and control of infection;
	secure appropriate health care services for patients with infection; and
	improve surveillance of infection.
	Measures taken on infection control are a matter for individual trusts. Each trust will have an infection control policy which should comply with current best practice and have access to local advice.

Medical Students

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total intake of United Kingdom medical schools was in each year since 1990.

John Hutton: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		United Kingdom Medical School Intake per Academic Year between 1990 and 2002
		
			  
		
		
			  
			 1990–91 4,311 
			 1991–92 4,320 
			 1992–93 4,449 
			 1993–94 4,531 
			 1994–95 4,778 
			 1995–96 4,699 
			 1996–97 4,833 
			 1997–98 5,062 
			 1998–99 5,069 
			 1999–2000 5,302 
			 2000–01 5,610 
			 2001–02 6,115 
			 2002–03(28) 6,740 
		
	
	(28) Figures are provisional until November 2003 when a final figure will be reported.
	Source:
	HEFCE
	Note:
	By 2005, UK medical school intakes are planned to be around 7,300

Mental Health Services for Deaf People

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many graduate primary care mental health workers there are in each NHS region.

Rosie Winterton: The NHS Plan set out that one thousand new graduate primary care workers trained in brief therapy techniques of proven effectiveness will be recruited to help general practitioners manage and treat mental common mental health problems. The target date set for local services through priorities and planning guidance is December 2004; training courses have just been established and arrangements to monitor recruitment are currently in hand. This means that the information requested about the employment by specialised trusts of new graduate workers is not yet available.

Mental Health Services for Deaf People

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps the Government are taking to improve mental health services for deaf people; and when he expects to see the results from these improvements;
	(2)  what action the Government are taking with regard to the consultation document, "A Sign of the Times";
	(3)  what steps he plans to take to implement the proposals in the consultation document, "A Sign of the Times"; and how he plans to measure the effectiveness of the changes;
	(4)  what steps the Government are taking to monitor the impact of the National Services Framework for mental health services on deaf and hard of hearing patients; and what the results are.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	The Government's strategy for mental health services in England is set out in the "National Service Framework for Mental Health" which specifies seven standards that people should be able to expect from services. The National Service Framework standards apply to all people of working age who have mental health problems including those who are deaf or hard of hearing.
	"A Sign of the Times", a consultation document on modernising mental health services for people who are deaf, sought the views of all stakeholders on a number of proposals to improve services for deaf and deafblind users of mental health services through a consultation exercise which ended in April. The Department will publish implementation guidance later in the year that will take all responses to "A Sign of the Times" into account.
	It is envisaged that the implementation guidance will set out comprehensive arrangements for performance management of the implementation process.

Methylphenidate

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children have been prescribed methylphenidate in the last year.

Stephen Ladyman: Information is not available in the form requested. However the figures in the following table show the total number of prescription items of Methylphenidate Hydrochloride dispensed in the community in England in each of the last five years. The majority of prescription items of Methylphenidate Hydrochloride are for the brand Ritalin.
	
		Number of prescription items of Methylphenidate Hydrochloride dispensed in the community in England. 1998 to 2002 -- Prescription items (thousand)
		
			  Total 
		
		
			  
			  
			 1998 126.6 
			 1999 158.0 
			 2000 186.2 
			 2001 208.5 
			 2001 254.0 
		
	
	Source:
	Prescription Cost Analysis data from the Prescription Pricing Authority
	In 2002, around 91 per cent. of the 254,000 prescription items were dispensed in the community to children (children under 16 and young people aged 16 to 18 in full time education). An estimated 1 per cent. of the items were dispensed to people aged 60 and over with the remainder being dispensed to other adults. These proportions have been similar in recent years.

Negligence Claims

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was paid to cover professional negligence claims on London hospitals in each year since 1992–93; what proportion each sum represented of those hospital budgets; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Information on the amounts paid to cover professional negligence claims is not collected centrally.

NHS (Public Health)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) public health tutors and (b) regulatory affairs managers are employed by the NHS.

John Hutton: Information on the number of public health tutors and regulatory affairs managers employed by the National Health Service is not collected centrally.

NHS Dentistry

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were waiting to be registered by NHS dentists in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) Tyne and Wear, (d) the North East and (e) England in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally. Registrations remain broadly stable in these areas and are shown in the following table.
	
		General Dental Service: Number of registrations with a GDS dentist since 1997
		
			 Health Authority/Primary Care Trust 1997(29),(30) 1998(30) 1999(30) 2000(30) 2001(30) 2002(31) 2002(32) 2003(32) 
		
		
			 England (million) 26.8 23.5 23.5 23.7 23.6 23.5 23.5 23.4 
			  
			 Northern and Yorkshire Region (thousand) 3,850.6 3,451.9 3,447.8 3,486.1 3,484.3 3,439.1 — — 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside HA (thousand) 213.2 188.6 191.4 190.5 193.6 190.2 — — 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside HA (thousand) 278.8 241.5 245.5 245.0 239.5 239.3 — — 
			 Sunderland HA (thousand) 169.8 147.0 147.0 148.8 150.8 152.3 — — 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear SHA (thousand) — — — — — — 743.1 751.6 
			 Newcastle PCT (thousand) — — — — — — 139.2 140.6 
			 Gateshead PCT (thousand) — — — — — — 101.1 99.1 
			 South Tyneside PCT (thousand) — — — — — — 84.3 86.1 
			 North Tyneside PCT (thousand) — — — — — — 101.8 103.3 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT (thousand) — — — — — — 150.3 153.1 
		
	
	(29) Registration numbers are not consistent with numbers for later dates because the 1997 numbers partly reflect the previous 24 months registration period (now 15 months).
	(30) September
	(31) August
	(32) Responsibilities were transferred from HAs to PCTs from 1 October 2003.
	Source:
	Dental Practice Board

NHS Staff (E-mail Access)

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what targets have been set for NHS staff to have access to email; what the baseline was for the target; in which document the target was published; and what progress has been made towards the target.

John Hutton: The Government's strategy document "Building the Information Core—Implementing the NHS Plan" published in 2000 set the target of March 2003 for all National Health Service staff to have access to email. This target is now reflected in the National Programme for Information Technology in the NHS that provides a new approach to delivering IT in the NHS.
	At 31 March 2003 NHS trusts reported via the information for health tracking database that 79 per cent. of all NHS staff (822,000 of a total of 1,037,000) had access to email and web browsing. Priority had been given to staff directly involved in the patient care process, so that 98 per cent. of consultants (28,600 of 28,700) and 82 per cent. of clinical staff (602,000 of 732,000, including consultants) had connectivity by that date.
	The new centrally provided NHS national email service is now available to all staff, although take-up is a matter for local priorities. The NHS Directory (electronic address book) is one of the largest in the world and today holds 930,000 entries. The simple mail transfer protocol relay service through which internal NHS messaging, including e-mail, is handled, carried over 30 million messages in August 2003.

Nurses

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses have been recruited by the NHS from South Africa in each of the last five years.

John Hutton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	The information requested is not collected by the Department. Information about the number of nurses admitted to the Nursing and Midwifery Council register is published by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (www.nmc-uk.org).

Nurses

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS nurses were (a) suspended and (b) on gardening or special leave, at the latest date for which figures are available; for how long they were suspended; what the total cost was to the NHS; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The Department of Health does not collect any information centrally on the numbers of National Health Service nurses that are suspended or on special leave.

Nurses

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses are in training; and how many were in training in 1997.

John Hutton: In 1997–98 there were 38,412 nurses and midwives in pre-registration training. In 2002–03 there were 60,189 nurses in pre-registration training, an increase of 57 per cent.

Obesity Reduction

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps have been taken in the last two years in (a) the London borough of Richmond upon Thames, (b) Inner London and (c) Greater London to reduce obesity; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Local strategies on reducing obesity are being developed as part of the national service framework for coronary heart disease and national service framework for diabetes. These programmes include a range of initiatives aimed at promoting healthy eating and increasing levels of physical activity. As part of the national school fruit scheme, over 300,000 children in London are receiving a piece of free fruit every school day. 32 schools in the London borough of Richmond upon Thames (primary and secondary) are part of the healthy schools scheme (launched nationally in 1999 as the national healthy school standard). In addition Richmond and Twickenham Primary Care Trust has delivered two healthy eating support programmes to tackle obesity and related diseases.
	Ongoing initiatives have a role in obesity prevention including the reform of the welfare food scheme, various school based initiatives such as the national school fruit scheme, the five-a-day community programme and the local exercise action pilots.
	Activity to tackle obesity in London is being delivered by a wide range of organisations and initiatives through a variety of funding sources, examples of these are:
	approximately 15 healthy living centres situated within communities with high levels of deprivation and health needs, have a focus on tackling obesity;
	nine five-a-day projects in London have been established in the most 20 per cent. deprived of primary care trusts;
	the national school fruit scheme has 90 per cent. coverage in London in all local education authority maintained primary and infant schools;
	a school sport co-ordinators programme that aims to promote physical activity in out of school hours learning is also in place across London.

Overseas Nurses

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what efforts his Department is making to enforce the ban on the recruitment of nurses from developing countries.

John Hutton: The code of practice for national health service employers involved in the international recruitment of health care professionals was published in October 2001.
	The code states that developing countries should not be targeted for recruitment, nor should NHS employers contract with agencies, which do not comply with the code. Workforce development confederations are working closely with NHS employers in their area to ensure their compliance.
	The Department has established a list of recruitment agencies that are operating in line with the code. The list appears on the Department website www.doh.gov.uk/international-recruitment.

Overseas Visitors (NHS Treatment)

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on treatment on the NHS for overseas visitors who are fully or partially exempt from the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 1989, in each of the last five years.

John Hutton: holding answer 15 September 2003
	This information is not available centrally. Once it has been established that an overseas visitor is exempt from charges, they are dealt with in the same way as any other patient and national health service trusts are not required to keep a separate record of the cost of their treatment.

Parliamentary Questions

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many named day written parliamentary questions tabled to him between 1 February and 1 July received (a) a substantive answer on the named day and (b) a holding answer;
	(2)  how many named day written Parliamentary questions were tabled to him between 1 February and 1 July; and how many of those which received a holding answer were given a substantive answer (a) within three days, (b) within seven days, (c) within 14 days, (d) within 28 days and (e) over 28 days.

Rosie Winterton: The Department received 549 named day written Parliamentary Questions between 1 February and 1 July 2003. Of these, 146 were answered on the day named, and 403 received substantive replies after being given a holding answer. The breakdown of days within which answers were given is shown in the table.
	
		
			 Interval (calendar days after the holdinganswer) within which a substantive answerwas given Number of PQs 
		
		
			 1–3 150 
			 4–7 117 
			 8–14 66 
			 15–28 53 
			 Over 28 17 
			 Total 403

Parliamentary Questions

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many written Parliamentary Questions he received in each Parliamentary year since May 1997; how many received no answer due to the information not being collected or held centrally; and what proportion of the total number of written questions received this represented in each year.

Rosie Winterton: Using Table Office information for previous years, the number of parliamentary Questions received in each Parliamentary year since 1997 is shown in the table:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1997–98 4,316 
			 1998–99 2,769 
			 1999–2000 3,864 
			 2000–01 1,798 
			 2001–02 9,314 
			 2002–03 (33)6,970 
		
	
	(33) To 1 July 2003
	Information is not collected centrally on the number of PQs that received no answer and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Written Questions

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many ordinary written Parliamentary questions were tabled to him between 15 October 2002 and 1 July 2003;
	(2)  how many ordinary written questions that were tabled between 15 October 2002 and 1 July 2003 received a substantive answer (a) within three days, (b) within seven days, (c) within fourteen days, (d) within 28 days and (e) over 28 days.

Rosie Winterton: A total of 5,637 ordinary written Parliamentary Questions were tabled between 15 October 2002 and 1 July 2003.
	The breakdown by days within which answers were given, based on a 10 per cent. sample of the total, is shown in the table.
	
		
			 Interval (calendar days) after the question'sdue date in which an answer was given Number of PQs 
		
		
			 0–3 80 
			 4–7 201 
			 8–14 165 
			 15–28 116 
			 Over 28 46 
			 Total 608

Patient Readmissions

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of discharged patients were readmitted within one month as emergencies in each quarter of the past five years.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department of Health collects quarterly monitoring information on emergency readmissions within 28 days of discharge for patients of all ages. This information has been collected since 2002–03 and the information is set out in table 1.
	Prior to 2002–03, the target for emergency readmissions related only to those patients aged 75 and over. Table 2 also includes the quarterly information for patients aged 75 and over prior to 2002–03.
	
		Table 1
		
			 Financialyear Quarter Number of people of all ages discharged from hospital Number of people of all ages readmitted as an emergency within 28 days of discharge Rate of 28 day emergency readmission for people of all ages (percentage) 
		
		
			 2003–04 Q1 2,402,573 135,153 5.6 
			 2002–03 Q4 2,501,481 138,742 5.5 
			 2002–03 Q3 2,429,606 131,704 5.4 
			 2002–03 Q2 2,334,696 124,176 5.3 
			 2002–03 Q1 2,313,818 125,085 5.4 
		
	
	
		Table 2
		
			 Financial year Quarter Number of people aged 75 and over discharged from hospital Number of people aged 75 and over readmitted as an emergency within 28 days of discharge Rate of 28 day emergency readmission for people aged over 75 (percentage) 
		
		
			 2001–02 Q4 437,034 31,493 7.2 
			 2001–02 Q3 429,124 31,427 7.3 
			 2001–02 Q2 422,143 30,083 7.1 
			 2001–02 Q1 408,817 29,878 7.3 
			 2000–01 Q4 409,335 31,538 7.7 
			 2000–01 Q3 411,137 29,896 7.3 
			 2000–01 Q2 406,761 28,820 7.1 
			 2000–01 Q1 390,010 28,735 7.4 
			  1999–2000Q4 377,277 28,611 7.6 
			  1999–2000Q3 368,244 26,523 7.2 
			  1999–2000Q2 368,329 26,758 7.3 
			  1999–2000Q1 346,079 26,702 7.7 
			 1998–99 Q4 365,801 29,933 8.2 
			 1998–99 Q3 361,266 29,110 8.1 
			 1998–99 Q2 357,275 28,839 8.1 
			 1998–99 Q1 342,787 29,213 8.5 
			 1997–98 Q4 343,170 24,435 7.1 
			 1997–98 Q3 335,188 23,771 7.1 
			 1997–98 Q2 333,781 22,385 6.7 
			 1997–98 Q1 326,996 23,557 7.2 
			 1996–97 Q4 339,389 23,625 7.0

Patients Forums

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of patient forums will be fully (a) operational and (b) staffed by 1 December.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	All patients' forums will be in place and fully operational by 1 December 2003. Staff support for all patients' forums has been in place since 1 September 2003.

Post-operative Death Rates

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on post-operative death rates at the Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	In the 2003 Performance Ratings, covering patients treated in the calendar year 2002, Portsmouth Hospitals national health service trust was assessed as having a 28 day post-surgical mortality rate that was not statistically different from the England average. In earlier years' performance assessments, Portsmouth has always done as well as or better than the England average.

Prescribing Budget

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) 2002–2003 prescribing budget as notified to the Prescriptions Pricing Authority, (b) most recent forecast out-turn of prescribing expenditure for 2002–03, (c) projected (i) overspend and (ii) underspend, and (d) projected (i) overspend and (ii) underspend as a percentage of the prescribing budget were.

John Hutton: Information on the prescribing budgets notified to the Prescription Pricing Authority (PPA) by each Primary Care Trust has been placed in the Library. They are practice level prescribing budgets. They do not necessarily reflect the total resource set aside locally for prescribing as Primary Care Trusts may hold contingency reserves. Information is now available for the entire financial year (up to and including March 2003) so the outurn and overspend figures are actual figures, not forecasted ones.

Prescriptions

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prescriptions have been issued by GPs in each of the last five years; and what steps have been taken to modernise the system.

John Hutton: holding answer 15 September 2003
	Information on the number of prescriptions dispensed in the community in each of the last five years is shown in the table.
	In June 2002, three pilot exercises commissioned by the Department of Health commenced to examine the electronic transmission of prescriptions (ETP). The pilots explained options for linking computerised general practitioner practices to local community pharmacies and the Prescription Pricing Authority using the NHSnet. The pilots, which formally closed at the end of June 2003, were independently evaluated and have helped to identify the benefits, risks and costs associated with ETP. These findings will be used to inform the development of a sustainable, national prescription service which is an integral part of the national health service information technology strategy.
	
		Number of prescription items(34), forms(34), and average items per form of all drugs dispensed in the community in England, 1998–2002
		
			  Total items(34) Forms(34) Average items per form 
		
		
			  Number of prescription items and forms(34), excluding dispensing doctors 
			 1998 467.1 268 1.74 
			 1999 481.9 270.9 1.78 
			 2000 500.5 276.2 1.81 
			 2001 533.1 290.4 1.84 
			 2002 560.7 299.8 1.87 
			
			  Number of prescription items and forms(34), including dispensing doctors 
			 2001 597.4 319.3 1.87 
			 2002 617 325.5 1.9 
		
	
	(34) Millions
	Notes
	1. The data are based on all prescription items dispensed in the community in England, i.e. by community pharmacists and appliance contractors, dispensing doctors, and prescriptions submitted by prescribing doctors for items personally administered in England.
	2. The data do not cover drugs dispensed in hospital or private prescriptions.
	3. Prior to 2001, items dispensed by dispensing doctors and personal administration prescriptions are excluded.
	4. Each single item written on the form is counted as a prescription item.
	Source :
	Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) data from the Prescription Pricing Authority

Prescriptions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance has been given in the last year to primary care trusts regarding the time limits for prescriptions.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	We have not issued guidance on the time limits for, or duration of, prescriptions. However, it is common practice nowadays for general practitioner prescriptions to be issued for one month or 28 days at a time.

Suicide

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaf people have committed suicide in each of the last five years.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 16 September 2003
	This information is not collected centrally.

Tooth Decay

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the incidence of tooth decay in children was in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) Tyne and Wear and (d) the UK (i) in 1980, (ii) in 1990, (iii) in 2000 and (iv) the latest date for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: The information shown in the table on the average number of decayed, missing and filled teeth in children aged five has been extracted from reports of surveys conducted by the British Association for the Study of Community Dentistry.
	
		BASCD Survey of the dental caries experience of 5-year-old children -- (Mean number of decayed, missing or filled teeth)
		
			  Year of study 
			  1985–86(35) 1987–88(35) 1989–90(35) 1991–92(35) 1993–94(35) 
		
		
			 United Kingdom — — — — 1.96 
			 Great Britain — 1.88 1.80 1.86 1.92 
			 England and Wales — — — — — 
			 England — 1.73 1.62 1.66 1.74 
			 Northern Region 1.97 1.60 1.69 1.71 1.99 
			 Gateshead 1.70 1.62 1.09 1.32 2.31 
			 Newcastle — 1.20 1.28 1.37 1.47 
			 North Tyneside 2.11 1.04 1.46 1.35 1.40 
			 South Tyneside 2.23 2.03 1.80 1.87 2.42 
			 Sunderland 2.28 1.64 1.98 1.90 2.13 
			   
			 Northern and Yorkshire Region — — — — — 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside HA — — — — — 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside HA  — — — — 
			 Sunderland HA — — — — — 
			   
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear SHA — — — — — 
			 Gateshead PCT — — — — — 
			 Newcastle PCT — — — — — 
			 North Tyneside PCT — — — — — 
			 South Tyneside PCT — — — — — 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT — — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			  Year of study 
			  1995–96(36) 1997–98(36) 1999–2000(35),(36) 2001–02(35),(37) 
		
		
			 United Kingdom 1.84 1.68 — — 
			 Great Britain 1.79 1.64 1.57 — 
			 England and Wales 1.68 1.53 1.47 1.52 
			 England 1.63 1.47 1.43 1.47 
			  
			 Northern Region 2.08 — — — 
			 Gateshead 1.85 — — — 
			 Newcastle 1.52 — — — 
			 North Tyneside 1.13 — — — 
			 South Tyneside 2.30 — — — 
			 Sunderland 2.84 — — — 
			  
			 Northern and Yorkshire Region 2.12 1.90 1.80 — 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside HA 2.05 1.32 1.23 — 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside HA 1.35 1.35 1.20 — 
			 Sunderland HA 2.84 2.14 1.93 — 
			  
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear SHA — — — 1.68 
			 Gateshead PCT — — — 1.31 
			 Newcastle PCT — — — 1.60 
			 North Tyneside PCT — — — 1.17 
			 South Tyneside PCT — — — 2.05 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT — — — 2.05 
		
	
	(35) The survey was not carried out for Northern Ireland in 1985–86, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1999–2000 or 2001–02. The survey was not carried out for Scotland in 1985–86 or 2001–02. The survey did not cover all of England in 1985–86. The combined results for England and Wales were not published from 1985–86 to 1993–94.
	(36) Following the transfer from Family Health Service Authorities (FHSAs) to Health Authorities (HAs) in 1996, the results from the surveys from 1995–96 onwards were published by HA rather than by FHSA.
	(37) Following the transfer from Health Authorities (HAs) to Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in 2002, the 2001–02 survey results were published by Strategic Health Authority (SHA) and PCT rather than by region and HA.

Urology/Gastrointestinal Surgery (Children)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what level of support is routinely offered to children discharged from hospital after complex urology and gastrointestinal surgery received in primary care;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the current situation whereby acute unit nurses are travelling from regional centres to primary care trusts in order to support children who have had urology and gastrointestinal surgery.

Stephen Ladyman: The successful transition of care for a child in these circumstances is reliant on preparations made by the regional centre in close liaison with local primary health care staff and the community nursing team. Levels of support will accord with the child's degree of dependency and transitional arrangements will include input from the regional centre appropriate to the child's recovery.
	A national service framework (NSF) for children is currently under development. This will set standards aimed at raising the quality of the health and social care services that children receive. The first part of the NSF, relating to hospital standards, was published in April. Successive parts of the NSF will be published next year, and will include consideration of the best means to support children post-discharge following complex surgery.

Vehicles (London)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) frontline ambulances, (b) patient transport vehicles, (c) fast response cars, (d) medical motorbikes, (e) medical cycles and (f) special baby care units are available for London; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 8 September 2003, Official Report, column 185W.

TREASURY

Air Passenger Duty

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the total cost of the changes to air passenger duty announced in the March 2000 Budget for each year from 2000–01 to 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The estimated cost to the Exchequer of the changes made to the air passenger duty at Budget 2000 are published in Table 1.2 of that year's FSBR (HC346) as:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2000–01 5 
			 2001–02 80 
			 2002–03 90 
		
	
	No estimates have been made for other years.

All-employee Share Plan

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the total annual cost of the all-employee share plan introduced in the March 2000 Budget for each year from 2000–01 to 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Estimates of the cost of Share Incentive Plan (SIP) are published annually in Inland Revenue Statistics and the Tax Ready Reckoner. The latest estimates are:
	
		£ million
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Income tax 10 45 150 
			 National insurance 5 30 90 
			 Total 15 75 240 
		
	
	No estimates have yet been made for subsequent tax years.

Capital Gains Tax

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his estimate is of the revenue yield from abolishing capital gains tax and taxing capital gains at the marginal rate of income tax; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what his latest estimate is of the cost of capital gains tax exemptions, excluding that relating to the disposal of the only or main residence, broken down in cash terms by each income decile;
	(3)  what his estimate is of the effect on the revenue yield from capital gains tax of simultaneously abolishing the (a) taper relief, (b) annual exempt amount and (c) gains accrued but unrealised at death, in each year from 2003–04 to 2005–06, broken down to show the cash effects on each income decile; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Estimates of the cost, on an accrual basis, of capital gains tax exemptions and reliefs for 2001–02 and 2002–03 are published in Table A3.1 in the Budget Report 2003.
	There are no estimates of the revenue yield from abolishing capital gains tax and taxing capital gains at the marginal rate of tax, except at a disproportionate cost.
	There are no estimates on the revenue yield of a simultaneous abolition of taper relief, annual exempt amount and gains accrued but unrealised at death, except at a disproportionate cost. The total cost of these reliefs and exceptions in Table A3.1, referred to above, does not take account of any interaction between the abolition of one relief or exemption and subsequent changes in the cost of the others.
	Figures for later years are not available; breakdown of reliefs/exemptions by income decile is only available at a disproportionate cost.

Capital Gains Tax

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his estimate is of the revenue yield of (a) abolishing the capital gains tax annual exempt amount for (i) individuals and (ii) trustees and (b) reducing to £2,000 per annum the capital gains tax annual exempt amount for (A) individuals and (B) trustees; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what his estimate is of the revenue which would be raised by reducing the capital gains tax exempt amount to the level of the personal income tax allowance for (a) 2003–04 and (b) 2004–05; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The total estimated yield on an accruals basis from abolishing capital gains tax annual exempt amount for individuals and trusts in 2001–02 and 2002–03 is published in Table A3.1 in the Budget Report 2003. They exclude any behavioural response to the tax change.
	The total estimated yield on an accruals basis from reducing individuals capital gains tax annual exempt amount to £2,000 or setting it to the personal income tax allowance in 2003–04 and 2004–05 is set out in the following table.
	
		
			 Yield, £ millions 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Individuals AEA set to £2,000 per annum (Trust AEA = £1 ,000) 190 240 
			 Individuals AEA set to Personal Income Tax Allowance (Trust AEA = half the Personal Allowance) 70 90 
		
	
	The figures are consistent with the assumptions made in the Budget 2003 on future asset prices, and take into account the likely taxpayer behavioural responses to the tax change. The Annual Exempt Amount for Trusts is assumed to be half that of individuals.
	The model used to cost CGT changes of this type links the AEA for individuals and trusts according to current practice. It is not possible to separately model the Annual Exempt Amount for individuals and trusts.

Capital Gains Tax

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he is taking to prevent avoidance activities in relation to capital gains tax; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: This Government are committed to tackling avoidance of tax and have introduced a number of anti-avoidance measures relating to capital gains tax. We continue to monitor the position and shall not hesitate to introduce further legislation to protect the tax base when it is necessary to do so.

Changing Jobs

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to assist those for whom a move to new employment would impose cash flow problems.

John Healey: The Government recognise that the transition from welfare to work can be difficult for many. Consequently it has developed a range of measures to ease the move to new employment. The Job Grant offers £100 to longer-term benefit claimants who move into work. From October 2004 eligibility for the Job Grant will be extended and a new higher rate of £250 for households with children will be introduced.
	These enhanced arrangements will replace the Back to Work Bonus and the lone parent Income Support run-on.
	They will also be complemented by further changes to additional support. From April 2003, access to the Adviser Discretion Fund (ADF) has been extended to all those who have been claiming benefits for six months or more to meet essential costs of moving into work. In addition, from April 2004 a series of measures to simplify the administration of Housing Benefit will be introduced. These will include ending the requirement for claimants to submit a new claim each time they return to work. Instead they will only need to report their change in circumstances, making the move into work easier and smoother.
	Further details of all these measures can be found in the 2002 Pre-Budget Report and 2003 Budget Report.

Child Trust Fund

Howard Flight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will publish the proposals for the Child Trust Fund.

Ruth Kelly: The Child Trust Fund is intended to encourage parents and children to develop the savings habit. It will ensure that every child, whatever their family background, will have access at the age of 18 when they begin their adult life, to a stock of assets which they can invest in their future.
	It will also help children and their parents to understand the benefits of saving and investment and how to engage with financial institutions.
	Detailed proposals covering the nature of the Child Trust Fund, how it will operate and the information and guidance that will be provided will be published shortly.

Corporation Tax

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the cost of abolishing the small companies rate of corporation tax and the main rate of corporation tax and replacing them with a single rate of 25 per cent. levied above the starting rate threshold.

Dawn Primarolo: This is not an option that the Government have considered, so no thorough analysis of the potential cost is available. All taxes are kept under review and decisions on tax rates are made as part of the normal Budget process. I refer the hon. Member to the Tax Ready Reckoner for indicative f igures on the direct effects of illustrative tax changes.

Delays (Travellers)

Greg Knight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to reduce delays caused to bona fide travellers at customs entry points in the United Kingdom.

John Healey: The great majority of people entering the UK at ports and airports are not physically stopped by Customs. Customs use intelligence information and risk-profiling techniques to try to ensure that their checks inconvenience as few legitimate travellers as possible.
	When Customs do undertake physical checks, their aim is always to take no longer than necessary to fulfil their anti-smuggling responsibilities.

Energy Efficiency

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has held with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on encouraging greater use of energy-saving practices in homes.

John Healey: Treasury Ministers and officials hold regular discussions with Defra on all policies including domestic energy efficiency.
	In August this year, the Treasury and Defra launched a joint consultation document, "Economic Instruments to Improve Household Energy Efficiency: Consultation Document on Specific Measures".

Income Tax Rates

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people paid (a) income tax, (b) income tax at the lower rate of 10 per cent, (c) income tax at the basic rate and (d) income tax at the upper rate in each year from 1990–91 to 2003–04; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to National Statistics table 2.1 on the Inland Revenue's website:
	http://www.inlandrevenue.aov.uk/stats/income tax/itt01 l.htm.

Life Insurance

John Stanley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will receive a reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling of 7 March 2003 to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury on the provision of life insurance against loss of life through acts of terrorism.

Ruth Kelly: I have done so.

Mobile Phones

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the cost of the March 1999 Budget decision to remove the income tax charge on mobile phones for each year from 1999–2000 to 2004–05; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Latest figures for the income tax liability on private use of employer provided mobile phones for the two years before the charge was removed are £30 million for 1997–98 rising to £40 million for 1998–99. These figures are based on information supplied by employers on P11D returns after the end of those years. With effect from 1999–2000, when the charge was removed, employers no longer had to report this information and so no updated estimates, following those given in the 1999 Financial Statement and Budget Report, have been made.

Pension Provision

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his estimate is of the revenue effect of introducing an earnings cap on the earnings for which pension provision may be made with income tax relief of £50,000 per annum; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what his estimate is of the revenue effect of introducing a maximum level of earnings for which pension provision may be made with income tax relief of (a) £40,000, (b) £50,000, (c) £60,000, (d) £70,000, (e) £80,000, (f) £90,000, (g) £100,000 and (h) £150,000; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Due to the uncertainty of the behavioural effects resulting from such changes, estimates are not available.

Pensions

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the cost of income tax relief on approved pension schemes, in cash terms, broken down by each income decile; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Available estimates of the cost of tax relief on private pensions are contained in table T7.9 of Inland Revenue Statistics. The latest version is on the Inland Revenue website; http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/pensions/p t09 l.htm. It is not possible to break these estimates down by income decile.

Recovering Money (Court Action)

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what evaluation his Department has carried out of (a) the effectiveness of court action in recovering money owed to private finance companies and (b) the value for money of bringing proceedings in such cases.

John Healey: The Government keep all aspects of procurement policy under review in order to ensure that high quality public services are delivered on the basis of value for money.

Stamp Duty

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his estimate is of the cost of the Pre-Budget Report 2000 decision to abolish stamp duty on property transactions in deprived areas for each year from 2000–01 to 2005–06; what assessment has been made of the effects of this policy on urban regeneration; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what his estimate is of the total annual cost of the stamp duty exemption on commercial property in deprived areas; what assessment has been made of the economic benefits of this relief; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The cost of abolishing stamp duty on property transactions under £150,000 in deprived areas from 30 November 2001 was £10 million in 2001–02 and £70 million in 2002–03. Estimates for later years are not yet available. The annual cost of exempting commercial properties prior to Budget 2003, included in the above amounts, was under £1 million.
	The estimate of the additional cost from lifting the £150,000 cap for commercial property in deprived areas, as published in table A1.1 of this year's Financial Statement and Budget Report [HC 500], was £90 million in 2003–04 and £50 million thereafter.
	This measure creates an incentive for purchasers of residential and non-residential property to invest in areas that they might not previously have considered. The social and physical benefits that follow when such areas are occupied by residents and businesses will provide a boost to the regeneration of these areas. We are committed to ensuring the effectiveness of the measure and are currently considering a range of options to evaluate the measure in time for the first report to the European Commission in 2004.

Stamp Duty

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the revenue cost of restructuring stamp duty on residential property sales so as to charge marginal rates of (a) 0 per cent. on property sales of £100,000 or less, (b) 2 per cent. on sales revenue of between £100,000 and £200,000, (c) 3 per cent. on sales revenue of between £200,000 and £400,000, (d) 4 per cent. on sales revenue of between £400,000 and £750,000 and (e) 5 per cent. on sales revenue of over £750,000; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The revenue cost of restructuring stamp duty on residential property sales according to the scheme described above is estimated to be £1.1 billion in 2004–05. This does not include any allowance for behavioural changes.

Tax Credits

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assistance is available to help low income families with their tax credit claims.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 15 July 2003
	A range of measures is available.
	Personal callers to Inland Revenue offices can make a claim to tax credits, as well as getting face-to-face help and advice, from any inland revenue inquiry centre. Jobcentre Plus customers can also get help, advice and make claims through Jobcentre Plus offices.
	For those customers who prefer to make a paper claim, there is a single simple form for claiming both working tax credit and child tax credit supplemented by comprehensive—plain language—guidance.
	A telephone helpline (GB: 0845 300 3900; NI: 0845 603 2000) is available 8am to 8pm every day (except Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Years Day and Easter Sunday). A dedicated helpline is available for those with hearing or speech difficulties.
	A range of explanatory leaflets is available covering the tax credits scheme in general, other help that may be available and further information about help with child care costs. These leaflets—and the paper claim form and guidance are available in large print and Braille versions as well as in a number of languages other than English.
	By visiting the Inland Revenue website (www. inlandrevenue.gov.uk/taxcredits), families—whatever their income or circumstances—can quickly establish whether they qualify for tax credits and obtain an indication of the amount of any potential award. Claims, and subsequent changes of circumstances, can be submitted online and answers to a wide range of frequently asked questions are also available on the site.
	The Inland Revenue is also piloting new ways of working with intermediary organisations and local community groups to provide assistance with claims. At the same time, Jobcentre Plus offices are making sure their customers are aware of the help they can get, through the working tax credit, as they move into work.

Tax Credits Computer

David Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on how many occasions since January 2003 the tax credits computer system has stopped working.

Dawn Primarolo: IT system supporting the new tax credits did not work initially as well as we expected and there was unscheduled down time as a result. The Inland Revenue worked urgently with their IT partners to improve the system's availability, speed and stability, and it has been performing much better for a number of months.

Unpaid Taxes

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the annual revenue cost of removing the Crown's preferential right to recover unpaid taxes, in each year from 2001–02 to 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The latest estimate of the annual revenue cost of removing the Crown's preferential rights in respects of taxes etc in insolvencies is:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2001–02 nil 
			 2002–03 10 
			 2003–04 65 
			 2004–05 70 
			 2005–06 70 
		
	
	Removal of Crown preference was one of a number of measures introduced in the Enterprise Act 2002 to make the insolvency regime more supportive of enterprise, and is designed to bring real benefits to unsecured creditors, including many small firms.

VAT (Historic Buildings)

Lady Hermon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to exempt the cost of restoring historic buildings from VAT; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: holding answer 15 September 2003
	Our long-standing formal agreements with out European partners allow us to keep our zero rates as they currently stand, but do not allow us to extend them or to introduce new ones.
	The Government are particularly concerned about the position of listed places of worship. That is why we asked the European Commission to bring forward proposals to extend the categories of permitted reduced VAT rates to include their repair, maintenance and improvement. We are continuing to press this case during the current EU review of reduced rates and have, in the meantime, introduced the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme to provide an equivalent reduction in the cost of these repair projects.